Son Dureta and Manacor hospitals get top marks

Son Dureta and the Manacor hospital have been listed among the 20 best hospitals in Spain by a private health management consulting firm. The Manacor hospital has been classified among the top ‘medium-sized hospitals’ while Son Dureta was among the top teaching hospitals. Most of the top 20 Spanish National Health Service hospitals are independently managed. It is the first time that the list has been compiled in Spain. The report says that on average, the mortality rate in the top 20 is 19 percent lower than other hospitals, the incidence of complications was 2.6 percent lower, better use was made of beds, the length of stay in hospital was lower, there was more outpatient treatment and the cost per patient was less. Thirteen of the top hospitals were in Catalonia, but the full list of the 140 hospitals which agreed to take part in the survey was not revealed. Mercé Casas, the director of IASIST, the company which compiled the report, described it as a starting point. Only 59 percent of the National Health Hospitals provided the information requested. They included all those in Valencia and the Basque Country, 75 percent of those in the Canary Islands and 65 percent of those in Catalonia. The hospitals were divided into five groups, and the top four in each group was selected. Taken into account were quality, efficiency and productivity. In addition to Son Dureta, the other top teaching hospitals were the Clinica Provincial of Barcelona, Santa Creu y Sant Pau of Barcelona and Cruces in Baracaldo (Vizcaya).