BayCare Named Top Quintile Health System for Fourth Consecutive Year

Clearwater, Fla., (July 5, 2022) – BayCare Health System has been recognized once again by a leading, independent survey for excellence in clinical outcomes, patient experience, operational efficiency, financial health and contributions to community health with a focus on equity.

FORTUNE/Merative™ (formerly FORTUNE/IBM Watson Health) has listed BayCare in the top 20% of large health systems in the country. This is the fourth year in a row BayCare has been recognized with this honor.

In addition to BayCare being recognized as a health system, St. Joseph’s Hospitals (including St. Joseph’s Hospital, St. Joseph’s Women’s Hospital and St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital in Tampa as well as St. Joseph’s Hospital-North in Lutz and St. Joseph’s Hospital-South in Riverview) were named among the nation’s 100 Top Hospitals® for the fifth consecutive year and the sixth time overall. With a combined total of 1,336 beds, St. Joseph’s Hospitals operate under the same license and make the list as a large community hospital.

“I am proud of our team members and physicians, who continue to deliver extraordinary care to our patients and the communities we serve, and I appreciate the leadership of our community boards of directors in our ongoing pursuit of clinical excellence,” said BayCare President/CEO Tommy Inzina.

When Inzina became BayCare’s CEO in 2016, he and the BayCare Board of Trustees set a goal to reach the top 20% of large health systems in the country by 2021. BayCare achieved that milestone in 2019 and has maintained the ranking since then.

Merative identifies the top hospitals from a rigorous evaluation of 2,650 short-term, acute care, non-federal hospitals in the U.S. The annual list recognizes excellence in clinical outcomes, operational efficiency, patient experience and financial health. Merative established the list to help identify best practices that may help other health care organizations achieve consistent, balanced and sustainable high performance. 
 
This year’s ranking of top hospitals once again includes a measure of hospitals’ contributions to community health with a focus on equity. It was developed by a team of experts at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Equity and the Bloomberg American Health Initiative at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

The hospitals included on the FORTUNE/Merative 100 Top Hospitals list had better results on key clinical and operational performance indicators compared to similar hospitals, according to Merative. These include survival rates, patient complications, health care-associated infections, 30-day mortality and 30-day hospital-wide readmission rates, length of stay, throughput in emergency departments, inpatient expenses, profitability and ratings from patients. 

FORTUNE and Meritave note that this year’s lists of top hospitals and top health systems in the U.S. “represent those that held up best” against a “gauntlet of COVID-related challenges – a novel coronavirus, supply and business disruptions, workforce shortages.” They add that these ongoing challenges “make this year’s 100 Top Hospitals list, based on data from 2020, unlike any other in the annual study’s 28-year history.”

For more information, visit http://www.100tophospitals.com/. 

About BayCare Health System
BayCare is a leading not-for-profit health care system that connects individuals and families to a wide range of services at 15 hospitals and hundreds of other convenient locations throughout the Tampa Bay and central Florida regions. Inpatient and outpatient services include acute care, primary care, imaging, laboratory, behavioral health, home care, and wellness. Our mission is to improve the health of all we serve through community-owned, health care services that set the standard for high-quality, compassionate care. For more information, visit www.BayCare.org.

About the FORTUNE/Merative 100 Top Hospitals® List
The FORTUNE/Merative 100 Top Hospitals list is determined using independent and objective research to analyze hospital performance. Organizations do not apply or pay for this honor or pay to promote their award. Award-winning hospitals and health systems serve as a model of excellence for the industry.

About Merative
Merative is a data, analytics and technology partner for the health industry, including providers, payers, life sciences companies and governments. With trusted technology and human expertise, the company works with clients to drive real progress. Merative helps clients orient information and insights around the people they serve to improve healthcare delivery, decision making and performance. Formerly IBM Watson Health, Merative became a new standalone company as part of Francisco Partners in 2022. Learn more at www.merative.com.