Memorial Hospital Central Averaged the Lowest Length of Stay in 2016 for Sepsis Medicare Patients of Major Colorado Hospitals at 4.52 Days
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By: Saparja Nag Feb. 15, 2018
A study of major Colorado hospitals by Dexur analysts determined that Memorial Hospital Central in Colorado Springs averaged the lowest length of stay (LOS) at 4.52 days for Medicare inpatients with septicemia or severe sepsis with major complication or comorbidity, DRG-871, in 2016. Memorial Hospital Central has not only held this distinction for the year of 2016; they also had the lowest average LOS in the state between January 2013 and December 2016 at 4.77 days. A comparison of these values indicates that Memorial Hospital Central was able to decrease the average LOS for Medicare inpatients with septicemia or severe sepsis with MCC over time. Length of stay is an important metric in determining the efficiency of medical care. When a hospital experiences a decreased average length of stay, this allows more patients to be treated within the same timeframe.
Hospitals were included in this analysis if they accounted for 3,500 or greater total Medicare inpatient discharges from January to December 2016. The facilities also had to have treated at least 11 inpatients at the DRG level. The complete analysis included 11 major Colorado hospitals, five of which are shown in the graphic above. These top five hospitals with the lowest average LOS for DRG-871 maintained their ranking between the 2013 - 2016 time period and the 2016 time period, with the exception of the 4th and 5th ranked hospitals. Medical Center of the Rockies, ranking 4th, narrowly surpassed the 5th ranked Centura Health - St. Anthony Hospital Lakewood as the two hospitals reported average LOS of 5.11 days and 5.13 days, respectively, between 2013 - 2016. In 2016, these hospitals swapped positions as Centura Health - St. Anthony Hospital Lakewood dipped just under 5 days for average LOS to rank 4th.
These five hospitals were also the only major Colorado hospitals to have an average LOS under both the national and state averages of 6.45 and 5.39 days, respectively, for 2016. This was a slight decrease from the 2013 - 2016 national and state averages of 6.64 and 5.55 days, respectively. This trend suggests that both the state and nation have been successful in lowering their average LOS for DRG-871. Colorado as a state has maintained its average well below the national average over the years as well, decreasing the state average LOS by 0.6 days.
Memorial Hospital Central was the 3rd highest discharging major hospital in Colorado for DRG-871 in 2016 behind Centura Health - Penrose Hospital and University of Colorado Hospital. Their 293 discharges in 2016 made up nearly 40% of their DRG-871 discharge volume from 2013 - 2016, representing a rapid increase in volume of patients served. During the four year span, they discharged a total of 734 DRG-871 patients.
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