Quality ratings for hospitals come in two flavors – professional and public. As can be expected, the professional quality ratings are the ones that can be trusted, but they are not as easy to access as the public rating systems. Public rating systems can be skewed towards a positive outcome by advertising, or skewed towards a negative outcome due to one complaint. Professional rating systems are often fairly done through industry reports and surveys, and thus can be more trusted. Patients should be discouraged from using internet healthcare rating systems, even if they are favorable towards your organization. What then are the professional quality ratings that you can trust, and how do they work?

The first thing to note is that even hospital quality rankings that are considered top in the industry can be considered flawed when placed under a microscope, such as the rankings of the US News and World Report, a frequent go-to guide for hospital rankings. These reports are generally meant to be overall rankings and may not take into account representative samples or all statistics that are available. In the end, there is no one way to denote “the best” hospital for a certain surgical procedure. Most hospitals and medical professionals are created equal and while some surgeons and physicians may be considered subject matter experts, there is no guarantee that this expertise will translate into better patient care.

The US News and World Report uses the four following criteria to rank hospitals:

1. Having intensive care units staffed by specially trained doctors

2. Having computerized order-entry systems for medications and other orders with error-prevention measures

3. Performing procedures such as cardiac catheterization and caring for certain high-risk neonatal conditions4. Having practices such as those designed to control hospital-related infections and cut down on medication and treatment errors.

While these are lofty goals, what about overall patient satisfaction surveys, or other criteria that medical professionals and patients alike can start rattling off? The reason is simple – these four are really the only universally measurable criteria for most organizations. Until there is a better source of information, such as the new EHR’s that the Obama administration wants to see in place, the US News and World Report is the best source for quality ratings of health care organizations.