McLeod Medical Center Dillon was recognized for preventing avoidable readmissions in the areas of Acute Myocardial Infarction, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, and Heart Failure at the SC PART (Preventing Avoidable Readmissions Together) statewide meeting on July 18 in Columbia, SC. Nearly 200 South Carolina hospital providers, payers, home health workers, hospice and trade association representatives were gathered. McLeod Dillon is one of 52 hospitals participating in the PART program that were honored for successfully reducing readmissions by at least 20 percent within the last two years. Award certificates were given for one or more specific diagnoses and/or all cause readmissions.

At the event, keynote speaker Andrew Miller, MD, MPH, said "improving care coordination requires work, but the work is doable and extremely important." He noted that South Carolina is improving more than many other states. Overall, South Carolina has lowered readmissions by 15 percent, ranking ninth out of 53 U.S. states and territories in the rate of improvement.

"The three most important things in care transitions are communication, communication and communication," said Miller.

PART lead and SC Partnership for Health Care Transition Improvement Advisor Laura Cole, RN, MSN, commented, "Every day I am amazed by the energy, dedication and innovative ideas put forth by the communities we serve," said Cole.

"We have decreased preventable readmissions, but more importantly we have provided a better quality of care for South Carolina patients. The work done by these amazing teams will continue to improve transitions of care in our state, which we hope will become a model for best practices."