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CMS posts two new quality measures on Web site

Quality Improvement Monitor, September 8, 2005

Consumers may now view information about a hospital's efforts to reduce surgical infections on the CMS Hospital Compare Web site, increasing to 20 the number of reported quality measures.

"As we enhance the information on hospital quality, patients can get more help in making important decisions about their care, and health professionals can take further steps to improve care," CMS Administrator Mark B. McClellan, MD, PhD, said in a press release.

The two surgical infection measures-posted for the first time in early September-include prophylactic antibiotics received one hour prior to surgery and prophylactic antibiotics discontinued within 24 hours of surgery. Information on the Web site, www.hospitalcompare.hhs.gov, will include data for up to four quarters of 2004.

The surgical measures are the first of a larger set of patient-safety measures that will be collected as part of the Surgical Care Improvement Project, which aims to reduce postoperative complications by 25% by 2010.

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