Baptist Health Madisonville Recognized for Higher Quality in Maternity Care

MADISONVILLE (March 26, 2018) – Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield has recognized Baptist Health Madisonville with a Blue Distinction® Center+ for Maternity Care designation as part of the Blue Distinction Specialty Care program. Blue Distinction Centers are nationally designated hospitals that show expertise in delivering improved patient safety and better health outcomes, based on objective measures that developed with input from the medical community.

 

Baptist Health Madisonville delivers 800 babies a year. The hospital offers its Centering Pregnancy program to support expectant mothers by helping them play a role in their prenatal care. Mothers-to-be have a choice of special options to choose from in customizing their childbirth experience. A neonatal ICU unit is on hand.

 

The Blue Distinction Centers+ for Maternity Care program evaluates hospitals on quality measures for vaginal and Caesarean delivery. To receive a Blue Distinction Centers+ for Maternity Care designation, a hospital must also demonstrate cost-efficiency. 

 

Quality is key: only those hospitals that first meet Blue Distinction’s nationally-established, objective quality measures will be considered for designation as a Blue Distinction Center+.

 

“Baptist Health Madisonville is proud to be recognized by Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield for meeting the rigorous Blue Distinction Center+ quality and cost selection criteria for maternity care set by the Blue Distinction Specialty Care program,” said hospital President Rob Ramey.

 

“At Baptist Health Madisonville we offer a full complement of maternity services provided by midwives and OB-GYNs, a lactation consultant for those wanting to breastfeed and NICU services for those little ones who need extra assistance,” said Lydia Long, RN, director of Labor & Delivery/Mother Baby services. “Our team is committed to providing safe, quality care for your family.”

 

Blue Cross and Blue Shield (BCBS) companies across the nation have recognized more than 1,000 hospitals as Blue Distinction Centers+ for Maternity Care. Hospitals recognized with this designation are assessed using a combination of quality information supplied by hospitals and cost measures derived from BCBS companies’ medical claims. Other Baptist Health hospitals given the Blue Distinction Center+ designation are Baptist Health La Grange and Baptist Health Lexington.

 

Since 2006, the Blue Distinction Specialty Care program has helped patients find quality specialty care in the areas of bariatric surgery, cancer care, cardiac care, maternity care, knee and hip replacements, spine surgery, and transplants, while encouraging health care professionals to improve the care they deliver. Research shows that, compared to other hospitals, those designated as Blue Distinction Centers demonstrate better quality and improved outcomes for patients. On average, Blue Distinction Centers+ are also 20 percent more cost-efficient than non-Blue Distinction Center+ designated hospitals.

 

For more information about the program and for a complete listing of the designated facilities, please visit www.bcbs.com/bluedistinction.

 

Nearly four million babies are born in the U.S. annually, making childbirth the most common cause of hospitalization, and Caesarean-sections the most common operating room procedures, according to National Centers for Health Statistics and the Agency for Health care Research & Quality (AHRQ). Reducing early elective delivery is an area of focus for the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).  According to Health Affairs, elective inductions result in more Caesarean deliveries and a longer maternal hospitalization.