Mercy Health Hospitals Earn Blue Distinction® Center Designation for Quality in Knee and Hip Replacement Surgeries

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Ohio has selected Mercy Health’s five Cincinnati-area hospitals as Blue Distinction Centers for Knee and Hip Replacement, part of the Blue Distinction Specialty Care program.

Blue Distinction Centers are nationally designated health care facilities that show a commitment to delivering high-quality patient safety and better health outcomes, based on objective measures that were developed with input from the medical community and leading accreditation and quality organizations. They include hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers (ASC). All designated facilities must maintain national accreditation and ASCs are also required to have an advanced orthopedic certification.

Mercy Health — Anderson and West Hospitals earned the Blue Distinction Center+ designation and Mercy Health — Clermont and Fairfield Hospitals and The Jewish Hospital earned the Blue Distinction Center designation.

Facilities designated as Blue Distinction Centers® for Knee and Hip Replacement demonstrate expertise in total knee and total hip replacement surgeries, resulting in fewer patient complications and readmissions. Blue Distinction Centers+ (BDC+) also meet cost measures that address consumers’ need for affordable health care.

Knee and hip replacement procedures remain some of the most commonly performed, elective surgical procedures in the U.S., according to a 2018 study released by the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. In 2014 there were 370,770 total hip replacements and 680,150 total knee replacements1.

“I congratulate the care teams at our hospitals for their recognition by Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Ohio. They earned this by meeting the robust selection criteria for knee and hip replacements set by the Blue Distinction Specialty Care program,” said Mercy Health – Cincinnati President Dave Fikse. “It’s one more indicator of Mercy Health’s ongoing commitment to providing great patient care.”

“Mercy Health’s designation as a Blue Distinction Center+ is a testament to their innovative approach to knee and hip replacement,” said Dr. Barry Malinowski, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Ohio medical director. “The Blue Distinction program is designed to recognize commitment to quality and to help consumers identify high performing health care providers. This is a well-deserved honor and I congratulate the entire Mercy Health team.”

The Blue Distinction Specialty Care program has helped patients find quality care in the areas of bariatric surgery, cancer care, cardiac care, cellular immunotherapy, fertility care, gene therapy, knee and hip replacements, maternity care, spine surgery, substance use treatment and recovery. Research for many of these programs shows that, compared to other providers, those designated as Blue Distinction Centers demonstrate higher-quality and improved outcomes for patients.