Can hospitals report their data in such a way that it looks better than it really is?
No. As hospitals submit the data to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the data is audited for accuracy at several points in the data submission process before it is placed in the OKHospitalQuality.org Web site. CMS validates the data by reviewing charts from the hospital’s files. The data is then accessed by the Oklahoma quality improvement organization, OFMQ, which sends the files to OHA for publication to the OKHospitalQuality.org Web site. OFMQ is a trusted source of valid information on hospitals. OFMQ has gathered hospital data for more than a decade, while working with hospitals on projects designed to improve quality. The Oklahoma Hospital Association has developed a validation process for the error prevention data to assure that it is accurate and collected in a consistent way from hospital to hospital.
