Doctors Hospital in Coral Gables is a non-profit general medical and surgical hospital offering adult care. Its specialties include gastroenterology & GI surgery, geriatrics, gynecology, neurology and neurosurgery, orthopedics, pulmonology and urology. It also offers care for cancer patients, rehabilitative services and emergency services, among other things.

The facility has 146 beds, placing it among the smaller hospitals in the Miami area. In the most recent survey year, the hospital admitted 6,530 patients and had 1,859 outpatient visits. Hospital doctors performed 1,859 in-patient surgeries and 4,594 outpatient surgeries.

Doctors Hospital has been ranked as the #6 hospital in the Miami metro area and the #17 hospital in Florida by US News & World Report. Several of its specialities are rated as “high performing.” Those specialties include:

• gastroenterology & GI surgery
• geriatrics
• neurology and neurosurgery
• pulmonology
• urology

The hospital has also received a score of 55/100 for safety from Consumer Reports. The score is significantly above the average for national hospital scores (44.5). The Consumer Reports score is based upon the hospital’s ability to:

• avoid infection
• avoid readmission
• communicate about medication and discharge
• appropriately use chest and abdominal scanning and
• avoid mortality.

According to Consumer Reports, Doctors Hospital ranked above average for “avoiding death – medical.” This category is based on the probability that a heart failure, heart attack or pneumonia patient will die within 30 days of being admitted to the hospital.

The hospital also earned top scores for the appropriate use of chest abdominal scans on patients. This means that it had a low percentage of “double scans.” Double scans occur when patients receive two kinds of imaging tests consecutively: one without dye and the other with dye. This needlessly increases a patient’s exposure to radiation. In addition, the hospital earned high marks for avoiding catheter-associated urinary tract infections. It reported having 0 catheter-associated urinary tract infections among its ICU patients with catheters between 4/01/2012 and 3/31/2013.

As noted above, Doctors Hospital ranks well in multiple specialities, according to US News & World Report. In these specialties, it ranks particularly high when it comes to:

Survival

Each high-ranking specialty received “better than expected” marks for the likelihood of survival 30 days after admissions (adjusted for severity and other risks). The hospital’s neurology department ranked highest of all with a “much better than expected” rating.

Patient Safety

The hospital scored high marks for successfully preventing different common types of in-house accidents and errors, including preventing pressure ulcers, post-surgical inpatient deaths from treatable complications, and post-surgical hip fractures.

Nursing Intensity

The hospital has 48 full-time registered nurses. The relative balance of nurses to patients is high across its “high-performing” specialties.

Advanced Technology

All high-performing specialties scored “high” and “highest” marks for having advanced technology such as diagnostic radioisotope services, image guided radiation therapy, PET/CT scanner and robotic surgery.

Patient Services

All high-performing specialty departments received “high” and “highest” marks for their patient programs such as hospice, pain management, rehabilitation and palliative care.

Doctors Hospital received a neutral rating for avoiding infections. It reported having 1 bloodstream infections among its ICU patients with central lines between 4/01/2012 and 3/31/2013. This is 7% better than national rates. The hospital also received a neutral rating for surgical site infections. It reports having 2 surgical-site infections in 143 surgical procedures conducted between 4/01/2012 and
3/31/2013. This figure is 32% better than national rates.

The hospital ranked neutral for “avoiding adverse events in surgical patients.” Adverse events are defined by Consumer Reports as a measure based on mortality or a longer than-expected hospital stays. The rates are compared with predicted averages based on the kinds of patients the hospital cares for and the types of surgeries it performs. In this category, Doctors Hospital had 4% more adverse events than predicted based on nearly 100 surgical procedures. Data is sparse, however, Consumer Reports notes that in the category of knee replacement surgery, the hospital had 19% fewer adverse events than predicted.

Doctors Hospital ranked below average for “avoiding death – surgical.” This category rates how often patients undergoing surgery died in the hospital after developing a serious, treatable complication. Such complications may include pneumonia, deep vein thrombosis/pulmonary embolism, sepsis, shock/cardiac arrest or gastrointestinal hemorrhage/acute ulcer. Conditions such as these should be identified quickly and treated.

Consumer Reports

Consumer Reports found that Doctors Hospital earned an above average rating for patient satisfaction, meaning that overall patients were satisfied with the quality of care they received. Of the patients surveyed:

• 97% said the doctors always or usually communicated well.
• 97% said the nurse always or usually communicated well.
• 94% said their pain was controlled or managed well.
• 92% said their room and bathrooms were always or usually clean

However, the hospital received below average ratings for communication upon being discharge from the hospital or being introduced to new drugs. In particular:

• 80% of patients said they received information about what symptoms and signs to watch for after leaving the hospital.
• 80% of patients said the doctors or nurses always or usually explained about new medication.

The U.S. News & World Report found that 82% of patients would recommend the Doctors Hospital to family and friends. This percentage is both above the state average for hospital recommendations (68%) and the national average (71%). Six percent of patients surveyed said they would probably or definitely not recommend the hospital to others. This percentage is below the state average (8%) and slightly above the national average (5%).

It is important to note that Doctor’s Hospital has amassed a top notch group of orthopedic doctors and is very well regarded for treating orthopedic injuries.

If you believe you or a loved one suffered an injury or illness due to the neglect of the doctors or physicians at Doctors Hospital call our attorneys today to discuss how how can help you and your family