• New benchmarking identifies hospitals’ surgical quality based on Medicare data, matching patients on 200 characteristics.
• In Pennsylvania’s top 20 hospitals, 5 had significantly elevated mortality rates, while 2 reported significantly lower mortality than matched controls.

Surgeons can leverage these insights for patient selection and performance improvement strategies.

• Detailed reports can highlight strengths and weaknesses in surgical programs, guiding enhancements for specific surgeries and patient demographics.