Comparative, comprehensive all-payer data on patient safety and hospital quality are available for the first time through WhyNotTheBest.org, The Commonwealth Fund's resource for reporting and comparing health care quality. The new data, derived from measures developed by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), was submitted by hospitals in nine states—Arizona, Florida, New York, Illinois, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Texas, Vermont, and Washington. Patient safety indicators reflect quality of care for hospital patients and focus on potentially avoidable complications and medical mistakes. Hospital quality indicators include inpatient mortality for pneumonia, heart attack, stroke, and other medical conditions and procedures. Visitors to WhyNotTheBest.org can compare hospitals within and among states and can also make use of the case studies and improvement resources available on the Web site.
