L.V. Stabler Memorial Hospital has been named a “top performer on key quality measures” by a national health care accreditation commission.

The Joint Commission, which accredits health care organizations across the country, recently recognized L.V. Stabler Memorial Hospital, along with 22 other Alabama hospitals and 1,043 others in the nation.

The designation marks the fifth year in a row that the hospital has been named to the list.

“Our entire staff has done a remarkable job,” said Donnie Rentfro, Chief Executive Officer for L.V. Stabler Memorial Hospital. “There’s very few hospitals that can say they’ve (been a Top Performer) for five years in a row. I’m very proud of our folks and it’s a tremendous testament of the care you can get right here close to home.”

The Joint Commission uses performance in evidence-based clinical processes including care for heart attack, pneumonia, surgery, children’s asthma, stroke, venous thromboembolism, inpatient psychiatric services, and immunizations for pneumonia and influenza to make its determinations.

L. V. Stabler Memorial Hospital was recognized for its treatment of heart failure, pneumonia and for its surgical care, according to Rentfro.

The “Top Performer” designation is awarded to hospitals “who attain and sustain excellence in clinical care,” according to the commission. Recognition in the Joint Commission’s “Top Performers on Key Quality Measures” program is based on an aggregation of accountability measure data reported to the Joint Commission during the previous calendar year. This year’s program results are based on data that were reported for 2014.

According to the report, a “Top Performer” must first achieve performance of 95 percent or above on a single, composite score that includes all the accountability measures for which it reports data to the Joint Commission, including measures that had fewer than 30 eligible cases or patients. Second, the hospital also must meet a
95 percent performance threshold for every accountability measure for which it reports data to the Joint Commission, excluding any measures with fewer than 30 eligible cases or patients.

Approximately one-third of eligible United States hospitals were included on the annual list published by the Joint Commission.

“While hospitals such as L.V. Stabler are committed to improving performance, recognitions like this do not mean it is time to rest,” Rentfro said. “We regularly review our performance to identify ways we can enhance the care and experience patients have at our hospital. Our patients’ safety is our top priority, and we thank those for entrusting their care to us.”

L.V. Stabler Memorial Hospital was one of 118 Community Health System (CHS) hospitals to be recognized and one of just 25 to have been named to the list for five consecutive years.

“Being named a Top Performer is the result of all physicians, nurses and caregivers in a hospital following established evidence-based practices that improve outcomes for their patients,” said Wayne T. Smith, chairman and chief executive officer of Community Health Systems, Inc. “We congratulate all recipient hospitals for their achievement and commend them for their work to enhance the delivery of quality care.”

In August it was announced that L.V. Stabler Memorial Hospital, which was purchased by CHS in 1994, was one of 38 CHS hospitals to be spun off to Quorum Health Corporation. The transaction is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2016.

Of the hospitals making up Quorum Health Corporation most are in cities or counties with populations of 50,000 or less, according to Community Health Systems.