Bigfork Valley has received a 5 star rating for Patient Experience of Care in the national Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) Hospital Compare.

The star ratings were released on April 16 to provide a way for consumers to easily recognize and understand the data that is posted on the Hospital Compare site. That data summarizes the results of surveys of patients with recent hospital stays about their satisfaction with their experience in a hospital.

Bigfork Valley joins an elite group of 251 hospitals nationwide and 13 in Minnesota to receive this rating. In addition to the summary ratings, each of 11 measures is rated separately. Bigfork Valley received the most five star ratings among hospitals in Minnesota in the individual measures.

The survey, called the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS), was first launched in 2006 to provide transparency for the hospital experience provided to patients. Although data is adjusted and hosted on the Medicare site, the surveys are not restricted to Medicare patients.

The survey covers such things as communication with doctors and nurses, explanation of medications and care, cleanliness, nighttime quietness and speed of response to a call, pain control, recovery at home, and overall rating and recommendation.

To receive a star rating, hospitals must have received at least 100 surveys back from patients after a hospital stay over the year and choose to publicly report results. There are 3,553 eligible hospitals nationwide and 84 in Minnesota.

The current ratings are based on a year of survey collection and cover patients discharged between July 2013 and June 2014. Survey results and ratings are released quarterly.