West Jefferson Medical Center Receives Blue Distinction Center Designation for Quality | The Blue Distinction® Designation Aids Consumers and Employers in Choosing High-Performing Hospitals

West Jefferson Medical Center has been named as a Blue Distinction Center in Spine Surgery by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana. The Blue Distinction Centers for Specialty Care® program is a national designation awarded by Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies to medical facilities that have demonstrated expertise in delivering quality specialty care—which expanded recently to include more robust quality measures focused on improved patient health and safety.

Since 2006, consumers, medical providers and employers have relied on the Blue Distinction program to identify hospitals delivering quality care in Bariatric Surgery, Cardiac Care, Complex and Rare Cancers, Knee and Hip Replacements, Spine Surgery, and Transplants. The selection criteria used to evaluate facilities were developed with input from the medical community, and include general quality and safety metrics plus program-specific metrics. West Jefferson Medical Center is proud to have met the rigorous selection criteria set by the Blue Distinction Centers for Specialty Care program.

“This distinction recognizes the clinical talent in our departments of neurosurgery and orthopedics,” said Nancy R. Cassagne, CEO of West Jefferson Medical Center Medical Center. “Additionally, the comprehensive care that is afforded our patients is delivered through the collaborative efforts of nursing, rehabilitation medicine, physical therapy, anesthesiology and patient safety and quality. We are very pleased and honored to have achieved this designation,” she added.

“We’re very excited about this expansion of the Blue Distinction program,” said Dr. David Carmouche, chief medical officer at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana. “The expanded emphasis on both quality and cost-efficiency takes the program to a new level. As for our network facilities that have been named Centers of Blue Distinction, we are proud of their commitment. We are eager to continue working with these top providers to give our mutual customers access to quality, affordable healthcare.”

Research confirms that the newly designated Blue Distinction Centers demonstrate better quality and improved outcomes for patients, with lower rates of complications and readmissions than their peers. The program provides consumers with tools to help them make better informed healthcare decisions. These results will also enable employers, working with their local Blue Plan, to tailor benefits to meet their individual quality objectives.