Along with technological advancements in healthcare, facilities also need to improve. According to the Strategic Analytics for Improvement and Learning report issued by the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs there has been an improvement at a majority of VA healthcare facilities.
Four things to know about the SAIL report:
1. The SAIL report analyses 27 quality and productivity metrics involving death rates, complications and patient satisfaction at 146 VA medical centers nationwide
2. The July 2018 SAIL report found 103 VA hospitals (71%) improved in overall quality. The largest gains were in patient mortality, length of stay and avoidable adverse events. All these were targeted by agency wide improvement initiatives.
3. Seven VA hospitals (5%) saw a decrease in quality.
4. The agency reported improvements in 15 medical centers under the Strategic Action for Transformation program, which keeps a tab on the high-risk hospitals and provides resources to better assist them.
Of these medical centers, 33% are no longer considered as high-risk and 73% have demonstrated meaningful improvements since they have been placed under the program in January.
VA Secretary Robert Wilkie says this is a major step in the right direction to improve quality of services for veterans.