Congenital Heart Center at Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital Earns Distinguished Three-Star Rating from The Society of Thoracic Surgeons

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., August 2, 2017 – The Congenital Heart Center at Spectrum Health Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital has earned a distinguished three-star rating from The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) for its patient care and outcomes in congenital heart surgery. The three-star rating, which denotes the highest category of quality and outcomes, places Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital among the elite centers for congenital heart surgery in the United States and Canada – one of only 11 hospitals ranked as three stars.

“The Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital Congenital Heart Center is proud of its outcomes and especially proud of these rankings that put us among the top centers in North America,” said Dr. Marcus Haw, co-director, Congenital Heart Center, Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital and department chief, Pediatric Cardiothoracic Surgery. “Our dedicated team works hard to positively impact the lives of our patients and we deeply appreciate this recognition.”

The STS star rating system is one of the most sophisticated and highly regarded overall measures of quality in health care, comparing the nationally benchmarked outcomes of cardiothoracic surgery programs in the United States and Canada. The STS Congenital Heart Surgery Database (CHSD) star rating is calculated based on overall risk-adjusted operative mortality for all patients undergoing pediatric and/or congenital heart surgery performed by an STS CHSD participant.

The Spring 2017 STS CHSD Report contains data collected over a four-year period, from January 2013 to December 2016, and includes 116 North American STS CHSD Participants.

“The Society of Thoracic Surgeons congratulates STS National Database participants who have received three-star ratings,” said David M. Shahian, MD, Chair of the STS Council on Quality, Research, and Patient Safety. “Participation in the Database and public reporting demonstrates a commitment to quality improvement in health care delivery and helps provide patients and their families with meaningful information to help them make informed decisions about health care.”

Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital is a 234-bed regional referral center and teaching hospital. It offers advanced pediatric specialty care with more than 300 pediatric physicians who practice in more than 50 pediatric specialties and programs. Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital is Michigan’s largest neonatal center. More information is available online.

About STS

The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) is a not-for-profit organization that represents more than 7,300 surgeons, researchers and allied health care professionals worldwide who are dedicated to ensuring the best possible outcomes for surgeries of the heart, lung, and esophagus, as well as other surgical procedures within the chest. The Society’s mission is to enhance the ability of cardiothoracic surgeons to provide the highest quality patient care through education, research, and advocacy.

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