Updated: 3:25 p.m.
PROVIDENCE – Lifespan’s Miriam, Newport and Rhode Island hospitals and Saint Anne’s Hospital, a Steward Family Hospital in Fall River, Mass., as among the 377 hospitals named by the Women’s Choice Award as one of America’s Best Hospitals for Orthopedics for 2017.
Gender differences impact orthopedic issues; according to an April 2017 study published in The Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery, women experience an increased rate of hypersensitivity to the metals in joint implants than do men.
Another study in The Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons showed clear gender differences in musculoskeletal disease. Structural anatomy differences, hormones, and genetics are factors in optimizing care for male versus female orthopedic patients. According to the Women’s Choice Award, the National Osteoporosis Foundation has found that one in two women – but only up to one in four men – will break a bone in their lifetime, due to osteoporosis. For women, the incidence is greater than that of heart attack, stroke, and breast cancer combined.
“As research has shown, women are at higher risk of complications from hip or knee replacement surgery and have different medical requirements,” Delia Passi, founder and CEO of the Women’s Choice Award, said in the organization’s statement. “America’s Best Hospitals for Orthopedics gives women a trusted referral resource to help them choose a hospital proven for clinical excellence that also recognizes their specific healthcare needs.”
“Earning the ‘Best Hospitals for Orthopedics’ designation is a great tribute to our entire orthopedic team,” Saint Anne’s Hospital President Michael Bushell said in a statement. “Not only does it signify our team’s commitment to providing high-level, safe, patient-focused care, from pre-surgical education to post-hospitalization rehabilitation, but also reflects our patients’ high satisfaction with their orthopedic experience. It is gratifying to work with a team that is truly leading the way in orthopedic care.”
The methodology used to select America’s Best Hospitals for Orthopedics evaluates Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems survey results and primary research about women’s health care preferences. Award recipients are also measured on their incidence of surgical complications and infections, including:
- A wound that splits open after surgery;
- Accidental cuts and tears;
- Deaths from serious treatable complications;
- Complication rates for patients with knee or hip replacements;
- Catheter associated urinary tract infections; and
- Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureu infections
To be eligible to qualify for this award, a facility must have arthroscopy, joint replacement and spine surgery orthopedic services available to patients, onsite physical therapy, and an MRI. It is the only award recognizing excellence in orthopedics based on robust criteria evaluating patient satisfaction and clinical excellence.
“We are very honored by the Women’s Choice award and proud that our efforts to deliver the highest quality care are being so widely recognized,” said Edward Akelman, chief of the department of orthopedics at Rhode Island Hospital and The Miriam Hospital. “The Lifespan Orthopedics Institute continually strives for excellence both through research and development of cutting-edge technologies and through a diverse team of specialists with extensive experience and expertise. In addition to recently receiving a national “Gold Seal of Approval for Advanced Certification for Total Hip and Knee replacement,” the Women’s Choice award affirms that our patients are getting great care and that the orthopedics program at Lifespan hospitals has achieved remarkable success.”
To review the complete list, visit https://www.womenschoiceaward.com/op-full/
Nancy Kirsch is a contributing writer for PBN.
