Quality
The open heart surgery and angioplasty programs at Southcoast are built on decades of experience and expertise in advanced cardiac care.
In partnership with Tufts-New England Medical Center in Boston, Southcoast has incorporated the best training techniques and implemented the best technology and information systems from around the nation, building a first class cardiac surgical program.
Our expert team of surgeons and highly skilled and caring clinical staff have performed cardiac surgery at some of the top teaching hospitals.
Together they have brought a breadth of experience and expertise here to the South Coast region — where it's needed most.
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Our program has been recognized for its commitment to quality in several successful surveys by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.
In one recent survey, Dr. Shukri Khuri of Harvard Medical School, a nationally recognized expert in quality measurement of surgical outcomes, noted that Southcoast's "implementation of cardiac surgery has been very successful. The integration of outcomes data with the care processes is exactly the model that every hospital should have to monitor patient outcomes in not just a great, but superb manner."
Southcoast's heart surgeons are board certified in thoracic surgery and our cardiac anesthesiologist is board certified in anesthesiology.
Southcoast also has a manager who is dedicated to maintaining all quality and outcomes data and carefully monitoring all of these measures.
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According to a number of studies, outcomes for open heart surgery are better when the surgery is performed by an experienced team.
Southcoast's open heart and angioplasty teams have decades of experience performing procedures at some of the top heart centers in New England.
Meet the Southcoast team that will take care of you
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Ultimately, our patients are the most important standard of our success.
- When you had important questions to ask a doctor, did you get
answers you could understand? 100 percent
- When you had important questions to ask a nurse, did you get answers you could understand? 94 percent
- Did a doctor or nurse explain the results of tests in a way you could understand? 100 percent
- If you had any anxieties or fears about your condition or
treatment, did a doctor discuss them with you? 100 percent
- Did you have confidence and trust in the doctors treating
you? 100 percent
- If you had any anxieties or fears about your condition or
treatment, did a nurse discuss them with you? 100 percent
- Did you have confidence and trust in the nurses treating you? 100 percent
- Was it easy for you to find someone on the hospital staff to talk to you about your concerns? 100 percent
- Would you definitely recommend a Southcoast hospital to your family and
friends? 94 percent
Our program is built on outstanding medical models, but we have also relied on the input of some other experts — local heart patients and their families. As a result, our heart services offer some unique features that focus on quality measures more difficult to measure — patient confidence and comfort.
One very successful service not often found in "big city" heart centers is our cardiac case manager who acts as a personal "guide" for each patient and their family throughout surgery, hospital recovery and even afterward.
And patients meet frequently with their heart surgeon and other team members. You'll get to know us as much as we get to know you.
Survey Says ...
Our patients tell us that our surgeons and nurses are really great. In Southcoast patient satisfaction surveys, our heart team scored a perfect 100 percent on questions pertaining to communication, trust and confidence:
Meet some of our open heart surgery patients
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Credentials, experience and attention to our patients' every need has helped Southcoast's open heart surgery program achieve superior quality outcomes.
Southcoast's open heart surgery program's key clinical indicators, such as mortality and complication rates, rank among the best anywhere.
Risk Adjusted Mortality:
Southcoast's risk adjusted mortality is 1.6 percent, well below the national average of 2.4 percent based on data reported to the Society of Thoracic Surgeons. Data are for 2006.
What does it mean?
A risk adjusted mortality rate represents the number of people who do not survive a procedure, such as cardiac surgery, due to infection, complications or other circumstance. The rate comes from a calculation designed to adjust the mortality rate for differences in the level of illness of the patient prior to surgery.
Risk adjusted mortality is usually an easier and more valid way to compare results at different hospitals.
As a measurement of quality, the lower a hospital's risk adjusted mortality, the better. Risk adjusted mortality is reported to regulatory agencies, such as the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, and medical and physician associations, such as the Society of Thoracic Surgeons.
Infection Rate:
Another quality measure is the rate of deep sternum (breastbone) infections during initial hospitalization for open heart surgery. Southcoast's infection rate is 0 percent compared to the national average of 0.4 percent. Data are for 2006.
What does it mean?
This is the most significant type of infection following open heart surgery, which requires an incision through the sternum or breastbone. A lower number indicates less infections have occurred. This does not include infections after discharge from the hospital.
Southcoast has reported no deep sternum infections in any of our open heart surgery patients.
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Our open heart surgeons are board certified and have each performed thousands of surgeries at heart centers in the U.S. Board certification means our surgeons have completed rigorous written and oral examinations and continue to meet the highest competency requirements in their field.
Meet heart surgeons and Thomas Carr, MD, and Christian Campos, MD
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Southcoast has several anesthesiologists who are dedicated exclusively to the open heart program and each brought years of experience in anesthesia services dedicated to heart surgery.
Meet cardiac anesthesiologists Larry Thiesen, MD, and Donald Cappadona, MD
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The medical specialty of cardiology requires advanced training beyond a three-year internal medicine residency program.
Our team of interventional cardiologists have completed fellowships in both general cardiology and also interventional cardiology, a relatively new field that focuses on advanced cardiac procedures such as angioplasty, coronary stents and other services.
All interventional cardiologists practicing at Southcoast are board certified in internal medicine and cardiology.
Jonathan Bier, MD
Interventional Services Director
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Dr. Bier earned his medical degree at the State University of New York Medical School completed a residency in internal medicine and fellowships in cardiology and interventional cardiology at Rhode Island Hospital. He is board certified in internal medicine and cardiovascular disease. He practices at all three Southcoast hospitals and Tufts-New England Medical Center.
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Dr. Farber earned his medical degree at Tufts University School of Medicine and completed a residency in internal medicine and a fellowship in cardiology at Boston Medical Center. He is board certified in internal medicine and cardiovascular disease.
Medical Director of the Cardiac Cath Lab
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Dr. Korr is a graduate of the University of Madrid School of Medicine and completed a residency in internal medicine and fellowships in cardiology and interventional cardiology at Rhode Island Hospital. He is board certified in internal medicine and cardiovascular disease. He practices at Southcoast and Miriam Hospital.
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Dr. Meuth is a graduate of Georgetown University Medical School and completed a residency in internal medicine and fellowships in cardiology and interventional cardiology at Georgetown University Hospital. He is board certified in internal medicine and cardiovascular disease. He practices at Southcoast and Massachusetts General Hospital.
