(Paradise), CA—Feather River Hospital today announced results from the 2001 Patients’ Evaluation of Performance in California (PEP-C) project.   The cornerstone of the PEP-C project was the largest and most comprehensive hospital patient survey ever released to the public.   Feather River Hospital was one of 113 hospitals in California that volunteered to participate.

 Designed to evaluate the hospital experience from the patient perspective, the survey asked more than 20,000 Californians hospitalized in the year 2000 questions like:

• Were you treated with respect and as a partner in the health care process?
• How well did hospital staff address your fears and anxieties?
• Did hospital staff explain test results and treatment options in a way you could understand?
• Did doctors and nurses explain what to expect after you left the hospital?

The project found that Californians give hospitals high marks for attention to physical comfort, including pain control, but believe they could do more to ease patients’ transition to home.  The study also found that Californians hospitalized for maternity care or surgical procedures reported more positive experiences than those admitted for medical reasons.

“The PEP-C project has validated our effort to provide excellence in caring for our customers and faithfulness in serving our community,” said Wayne Ferch, President of Feather River Hospital.    “By surveying our patients, we learn what we’re doing right and where we should focus our efforts to make our patients’ experiences even better.”

 “Participating in the PEP-C project has been an extremely valuable experience.  Our patients have given us a check-up, and their advice will help guide our quality improvement programs,” said Dr. Dean Hadley, Medical Director. 

 Every acute care hospital in California was invited to participate in the PEP-C project.  Of these, 113 volunteered to survey their patients under the project’s standardized procedures.  Participating hospitals accounted for 30 percent of eligible hospitals and 42 percent of licensed beds in California. 

 The California Institute for Health Systems Performance and the California HealthCare Foundation encourage consumers to use PEP-C information to help them choose a hospital.  However, the organizations note that important aspects of hospital performance, such as clinical performance, are not measured by the PEP-C survey.  For that reason, PEP-C sponsors urge consumers to consult additional sources of information and discuss options with their health care providers before choosing a hospital.

 About Feather River Hospital

Feather River Hospital is operated by Adventist Health, a not-for-profit organization with hospitals in 10 western states.  As an organization dedicated to delivering quality healthcare, Feather River Hospital is licensed as a General Acute Care Hospital by the State of California, and accredited by the Join Commission on Accreditation of Heatlhcare Organizations.  Feather River Hospital has a total of 122 beds, including 21 Skilled Nursing Facility beds.  With nearly 60 members on their active medical staff, and over 650 employees, they are committed to providing valuable healthcare benefits to area residents and reaching their goal for a healthier community.  Key services include 24-hour Emergency Services, Cardiac Care and Rehabilitation, Home Health Agency, Hospice Services, Outpatient Center, state-of-the-art Maternity Facility, Home Oxygen, Skilled Nursing Facility and Rehabilitative Medicine.

About the California Institute for Health Systems Performance

The California Institute for Health Systems Performance is a non-profit organization working with hospitals and other providers to develop better ways to measure health care quality.

 About the California HealthCare Foundation

The California HealthCare Foundation is an independent philanthropy whose mission is to expand access to affordable, quality health care for underserved individuals and communities and to promote fundamental improvements in the health status of the people of California.

Consumer guides from other parts of California, a detailed technical report, and an executive summary of the PEP-C project may be viewed on-line at www.chcf.org.  Publications may also be ordered at no charge by calling 1-888-430-2423.

###

Home | Hospital | Services | Classes | Jobs | Contacts | Map | Birth Day Place