Mass. Health Quality Partners (MHQP) Gives Hospital High Ratings

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NEWTON-WELLESLEY SCORES HIGH ON CLINICAL PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT REPORT

NEWTON, Mass. (February, 2006) – In a recent report on statewide clinical quality, Massachusetts Health Quality Partners (MHQP) found Massachusetts physicians continue to provide medical care that is significantly above the national average on most of 15 measures of clinical quality.

The Newton-Wellesley Physician Hospital Organization (active members of the Newton-Wellesley Hospital medical staff) did extremely well, rating well above the national average in all of its clinical measures: appropriate use of depression and asthma medications, breast and cervical cancer screening, chlamydia screening in young women, cholesterol testing for those with heart disease, overall diabetes care, and well-child and adolescent care.

The report, based on data from five Massachusetts health plans representing 4.3 million members, is aimed at improving the quality of care in Massachusetts. This report marks the first time that clinical performance measures for Massachusetts primary care physicians are publicly available at the medical group level.

The report is available on MHQP’s website (www.mhqp.org).

According to the MHQP's Quality Insights clinical report, Massachusetts medical groups score at or above the 90th percentile performance level nationally on two-thirds of the measures tracked in the study, including all women s health and pediatric wellness measures.

Providers in the Commonwealth also do extremely well in providing screening services for people with diabetes, a growing public health crisis.

The report also indicates areas where clinicians can improve, including the treatment of adult asthma where Massachusetts physicians perform significantly below the national 50th percentile. 

CONTACT: 
Rachel Kagno
Public Affairs & Marketing
Newton-Wellesley Hospital
617-243-6528
rkagno@partners.org