The 7^th Consecutive Year Deborah has Received Three-Star Designation

Deborah Heart and Lung Center has once again been awarded three-star ratings from The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) as a result of their exceptional cardiothoracic surgery program. The STS star rating system is one of the most sophisticated and highly regarded overall measures of quality in health care, rating the benchmarked outcomes of cardiothoracic surgery programs in the United States and Canada. The star rating is calculated using a combination of quality measures for specific procedures performed by an STS Adult Cardiac Surgery Database.

In the latest publicly-available STS report, capturing data from January 2019-December 2021, Deborah was awarded three-stars for the following:

• Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Surgery (CABG). Historically, approximately 20% of participants earn this rating.
• Aortic Valve Replacement (AVR). Historically, approximately 4-8% of participants earn this rating.
• Aortic Valve Replacement combined with Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Surgery (AVR + CABG). Historically, approximately 4-7% of participants earn this star rating.

This is the seventh consecutive year that Deborah Heart and Lung Center has been awarded multiple three-star ratings from the STS. These 3-Star Ratings place Deborah as one of the elite programs for open heart surgeries performed in the United States and Canada.

“We are exceptionally thrilled to have received these multiple star ratings from STS,” said cardiothoracic surgeon Paul Burns, MD, Deborah’s Chair of Cardiothoracic Surgery. “The STS database is the most highly regarded evaluation tool for cardiac surgery programs. A 3-Star rating from this organization represents the recognition of our commitment to the highest level of quality health care delivery. These star ratings provide meaningful information to patients and families, and can reassure them that they are receiving heart surgery at one of the very best hospitals in the country.”

He added: “Even more significantly, Deborah has received 3-Star ratings on a consistent basis year after year. That underscores the high quality of Deborah’s surgery program over a long period of time, and represents the hard work of a dedicated team focused on excellent patient outcomes.”

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

The STS National Database was established in 1989 as an initiative for quality improvement and patient safety among cardiothoracic surgeons. The Database includes four components: the Adult Cardiac Surgery Database (ACSD), the Congenital Heart Surgery Database (CHSD), the General Thoracic Surgery Database (GTSD), and the mechanical circulatory support database (Intermacs). The STS ACSD houses approximately 6.9 million surgical records and gathers information from more than 3,800 participating physicians, including surgeons and anesthesiologists from more than 90% of groups that perform heart surgery in the US. STS public reporting online enables STS ACSD participants to voluntarily report to each other and the public their heart surgery scores and star ratings.

See how we compare with other hospitals in New Jersey. 

For more information:  https://publicreporting.sts.org/participant/30043

Deborah Heart and Lung Center in Browns Mills, NJ is an 89-bed teaching hospital that specializes in the prevention, diagnosis, research, and treatment of heart, lung, and vascular diseases. Founded in 1922, Deborah has been a regional and nationally recognized leader throughout its 100-year history, during which time it has healed 2.3 million patients from every corner of the United States and 87 countries in the world. From performing the first open heart surgeries (adult and pediatric) in New Jersey, to running one of the highest volume left-ventricular assist device (LVAD) implant programs in the region, Deborah has stood at the forefront of medical innovation, all while never wavering from its founding mission “there is no price on life.” Deborah is consistently recognized as a leader in patient care from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, ranked among the top hospitals in New Jersey for patient satisfaction; holds a top-tier Society of Thoracic Surgeons rating which places Deborah among the best cardiac surgery programs in the country; and is designated a national Top Teaching Hospital by The Leapfrog Group. Deborah is an Alliance member of the Cleveland Clinic Heart, Vascular & Thoracic Institute.