Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois has recognized Blessing Hospital with the Blue Distinction® Center (BDC) for Spine Surgery designation.
Blue Distinction Centers for Spine Surgery help consumers find quality spinal care, while also encouraging health care professionals to improve the overall delivery of care nationwide.
The program identifies hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers that demonstrate expertise in patient safety and deliver better health outcomes. Patients treated at designated facilities benefit from the expertise and advanced practices that lead to improved recovery times and reduced complications, making a positive difference in their overall health journey, including an average of 28% fewer readmissions and 29% fewer complications within 90 days after spine surgery.
Blue Cross Blue Shield Association utilized the American Spine Registry—a joint effort with the American Association of Neurological Surgeons and American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons—for evidence-based performance measures and patient reported outcome measures.
Blessing neurosurgeons Drs. Ryan Brennan, Gayatri Sonti, Brian Anderson, and Quincy Medical Group orthopedic spine surgeon Dr. Philip Meinhardt, perform spine surgeries at Blessing Hospital. Alexis Shantz, FNP, nurse practitioner of the Blessing Spine Center, is also a member of the Blessing spine team.
Drs. Brennan, Sonti and Anderson are certified by the American Board of Neurological Surgery. Dr. Brennan completed a fellowship in spine surgery at the Cleveland Clinic. Dr. Sonti holds a doctorate degree in neuroscience from the University of Delaware. Dr. Anderson completed a fellowship at Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center and specializes in neuromodular implantation. Dr. Meinhardt is certified by the American Board of Orthopedic Surgery and completed a spine surgery fellowship at OrthoCarolina, Charlotte, North Carolina.
Among other criteria, facilities seeking BDC designation must:
• Have full accreditation from at least one national accrediting organization, as either a hospital or ambulatory surgery center
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• Have low complication, mortality. and unplanned readmission rates within 90 days after elective primary spine surgery
• Have enhanced recovery after surgery processes and procedures in place for quality perioperative care
• Participate in Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois’s BlueCard Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) Network
Since 2005, the Blue Distinction Specialty Care program has helped patients find quality specialty care—and, for those that meet the program’s cost criteria, at lower costs—in the areas of bariatric surgery, cancer care, cardiac care, cellular immunotherapy, fertility care, knee and hip replacement, maternity care, spine surgery, substance use treatment and recovery, and transplants, while encouraging health care professionals to improve the quality of care they deliver.
For more information about the program and for a complete listing of the designated providers, visit BCBS.com/bluedistinction
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About Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois is the largest health insurer in Illinois, serving nearly 9 million members and operating in all 102 Illinois counties. BCBSIL is a division of Health Care Service Corporation, a Mutual Legal Reserve Company and an Independent Licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. Learn more at bcbsil.com and follow us on Facebook, and LinkedIn.
About the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association
The Blue Cross Blue Shield Association is a national federation of independent, community-based and locally operated Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies that collectively provide health care coverage for one in three Americans. BCBSA provides health care insights through The Health of America Report series and the national BCBS Health IndexSM. For more information on BCBSA and its member companies, please visit bcbs.com.
About Blue Distinction Centers
Blue Distinction Centers (BDC) met overall quality measures, developed with input from the medical community. A Local Blue Plan may require additional criteria for providers located in its own service area; for details, contact your Local Blue Plan. Blue Distinction Centers+ (BDC+) also met cost measures that address consumers’ need for affordable healthcare. Each provider’s cost of care is evaluated using data from its Local Blue Plan. Providers in CA, ID, NY, PA, and WA may lie in two Local Blue Plans’ areas, resulting in two evaluations for cost of care; and their own Local Blue Plans decide whether one or both cost of care evaluation(s) must meet BDC+ national criteria. National criteria for BDC and BDC+ are displayed on www.bcbs.com. Individual outcomes may vary. For details on a provider’s in-network status or your own