Dr. John P. Sutton and Dr. Edward M. Leppard of Providence Health had the Lowest Average Length of Stay for Coronary Bypass Patients out of South Carolina Physicians in 2016
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By: Jeffrey Maser Feb. 22, 2018
A Dexur study of inpatient Medicare claims data from 2016 indicates that Dr. John P. Sutton, of Providence Health in Columbia, accounted for the lowest average length of stay (LOS) in South Carolina for coronary bypass discharges at 3.8 days. Dr. Sutton was the only physician in the state to report an average LOS under 5 days. Dr. Edward M. Leppard, who also practices at Providence Health, ranked 2nd with an average LOS of exactly 5 days. Two physicians from St. Francis Downtown in Greenville, Dr. Jeffrey Michael Griffin and Dr. Hugh M. Dennis, tied for 3rd in the rankings with an average length of stay of 5.1 days. Dr. John Matthew Toole, of Roper Hospital in Charleston, rounded out the top five with a 5.5 day average LOS. These were the only five physicians in the state of South Carolina to account for an average LOS under 6 days for coronary bypass procedures in 2016.
Physicians from South Carolina were included in the rankings if they accounted for at least 11 discharges for DRG-236 (Coronary Bypass Without Cardiac Catheterization Without Major Complication or Comorbidity) between January - December 2016. During this time period, the average length of stay for DRG-236 throughout the nation was 6.5 days, slightly higher than the 6.43 day average length of stay for Medicare enrollees from South Carolina. These rates have increased slightly over the past four years as the average LOS for U.S. Medicare enrollees between 2013-2016 was 6.49 days and the average LOS for South Carolina enrollees during this time period was 6.32 days.
Analysis of DRG-236 discharge data between 2013-2016 shows that Dr. Sutton and Dr. Leppard have improved their patients’ average LOS substantially over the past four years; Dr. Sutton only ranked 3rd in the state and Dr. Leppard 4th for lowest average length of stay during 2013-2016 at 5.5 and 5.7 days, respectively. Between this four year period and the year of 2016 alone, Dr. Sutton decreased the average length of stay for his patients by 1.7 days, the largest decrease of any South Carolina physician between the two time frames. Dr. Leppard decreased his average length of stay by 0.6 days.
| South Carolina Physicians with the Lowest Average Length of Stay for DRG-236 (January - December 2016) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average Length of Stay Rank (Lowest to Highest) | Physician Name | Practicing Hospital | Practicing Hospital City | Average Length of Stay (Days) |
| U.S. Medicare Enrollees | 6.5 | |||
| South Carolina Medicare Enrollees | 6.43 | |||
| 1 | Dr. John P Sutton | Providence Health | Columbia | 3.8 |
| 2 | Dr. Edward M Leppard | Providence Health | Columbia | 5 |
| 3 | Dr. Jeffrey Michael Griffin | St. Francis Downtown | Greenville | 5.1 |
| 4 | Dr. Hugh M Dennis | St. Francis Downtown | Greenville | 5.1 |
| 5 | Dr. John Matthew Toole | Roper Hospital | Charleston | 5.5 |
| 6 | Dr. Robert P Zurcher | Providence Health | Columbia | 6.1 |
| 7 | Dr. Deyanira Jerez Prastein | Lexington Medical Center | West Columbia | 6.4 |
| 8 | Dr. Alex Brian Mcintyre | Grand Strand Medical Center | Myrtle Beach | 6.6 |
| 9 | Dr. Jeffrey Allen Travis | Lexington Medical Center | West Columbia | 6.6 |
| 10 | Dr. Russell Frank Stahl | Grand Strand Medical Center | Myrtle Beach | 6.7 |
DEXUR PRO MEMBERS GET ACCESS TO:
- DRG-236 Average Length of Stay for the 10 South Carolina Physicians with the Lowest DRG-236 Average Length of Stay between January 2013 - December 2016
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