Nursing Magnet Hospitals Have Better CMS Hospital Compare Ratings Richard

Background: There has been conflicting data on whether Nursing Magnet Hospitals (NMH) provide better care. Methods: NMH in the Southwest USA (Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Nevada, and New Mexico) were compared to hospitals not designated as NMH using the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) hospital compare star designation. Results: NMH had higher star ratings than non-NMH hospitals (3.34 + 0.78 vs. 2.86 + 0.83, p<0.001). The hospitals were mostly large, urban non-critical access hospitals. Academic medical centers made up a disproportionately large portion of the NMH. Conclusions: Although NMH had higher hospital ratings, the data may favor non-critical access academic medical centers which are known to have better outcomes.