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Primary Listings

Cosmetic Surgery Tourism

This briefing paper about tourism for cosmetic surgery discusses vacation-related surgery trips. Report was prepared by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. The Society provides a patient safety checklist. Useful overview and link to international ASPS member surgeons. Updated 2010, so it doesn’t factor in the Covid-19 pandemic. This site also has a number of more recent reports on complications and costs of medical tourism for cosmetic surgery abroad. See also the January 2023 blog on medical tourism.

COVID-19 International Travel Recommendations (CDC)

Check the COVID-19 travel recommendations and restrictions for international travel, at this CDC site. Four levels are outlined: from low to Special Circumstances (or very high). As of July 11, 2022, no countries fell into Level 4 Special Circumstances which CDC advises to “avoid travel”. The travel recommendations improved dramatically as vaccines have been administered.

EU Hospitals 2018: Best Healthcare in Europe for Consumers

Where are the best EU hospitals and healthcare for consumers in Europe? Health Consumer Powerhouse (Brussels) names Switzerland as the new winner in its 2018 Euro Health Consumer Index. Netherlands and Norway took 2nd and 3rd respectively, among 35 European countries. New measures for mental health care bumped the Netherlands out of its long-held first place. Six categories: Patient rights, accessibility, outcomes, range of services, prevention and pharmaceuticals. Access and waiting lists get much attention. Analysis of healthcare systems and insights make this annual report a must read for anyone studying hospitals and healthcare models in Europe. Authored by Arne Bjornberg and and Ann Yung Phang. Johan Hjertqvist, is the founder of Health Consumer Powerhouse. Ninety pages, published February 2019. (No updates as of April 21, 2023.)

Joint Commission International (JCI) Accredited Organizations (71 countries)

Joint Commission International (JCI) Accredited Organizations in about 71 countries. List of accredited hospitals, labs, medical transport and healthcare organizations in Argentina, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Brunei, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Cayman, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, Ethiopia, Georgia, Greece, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Lebanon, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malaysia, Mexico, Moldova, Mongolia, Myanmar, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Palestinian Territory, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Uzbekistan and Vietnam. No reports, just list. UAE, Saudi Arabia and Brazil have the greatest number of JCI-Accredited hospitals and other facilities. If accreditation has been withdrawn, that too, may be noted.

Other Helpful Listings

Assisted Living, Home Health, Nursing Home Average Costs 2021 (Genworth) Editor's Pick

What were the average costs for assisted living, home health, and nursing home care in 2021?  According to Genworth, the typical cost for home health aide in a licensed agency was $27 per hour nationwide (median). A homemaker cost was slightly lower. The highest hourly cost for a home health aide was in Minnesota, at $36 per hour (median). Sixteen other states also were at least $30 an hour. The lowest rate was in Louisiana, at $19.

A private one bedroom Assisted Living facility cost more than $54,000 per year ($4,500 per month), though assisted living cost about $80,000 per year in Washington DC, Alaska and Rhode Island. The Semi-private nursing home median room rate in the US was $260 per day (almost $95,000 for a full year); nearly $300 per day for a private room. Rates vary greatly across the states. In Alaska, the median price for a semi-private room in a nursing home was a whopping $1,036 daily rate. More than half (26) of the states and DC have an annual median cost for a semi-private nursing home room at over $100,000 per year. All states listed; adult day care and homemaker rates also shown. Survey by Genworth Financial (CareScout) in August 2021; published January 2022. No updates available yet for 2022 or 2023.

Bariatric Surgery Centers of Excellence – Locate a Center & Bariatric Surgeon

Locate a Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence or bariatric Surgeon of Excellence. Surgical Review Corporation (SRC) has designated 64 hospitals as Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Centers of Excellence. Minimum volume is 80 cases per year for a Center of Excellence. For a Bariatric Surgeon of Excellence, minimum volume is 50 cases per year, and 125 cases in a lifetime. SRC is a non-profit patient safety organization that develops and administers health care accreditation programs. In addition weight loss surgery, it promotes high standards for other types of surgery. List of centers by state; includes US, UK, Canada, Mexico and about 20 other countries.

Dialysis Facility Compare from medicare.gov Editor's Pick

Compare services and ratings on kidney dialysis facilities in any state or US territory, by Medicare.gov. Compare kidney dialysis centers from Fresenius FMC, DaVita, US Renal Care, American Renal Associates, Dialysis Clinic, Satellite Healthcare, Mayo, and more. They are all here. Quality measures show relative survival among facilities and quality of care provided to Medicare patients at hospital-sponsored centers, nonprofit and for-profit dialysis centers. Patient satisfaction results also shown for each dialysis center. Time periods covered were not readily disclosed. Resources on kidney failure and end stage renal disease (ESRD) also linked. Updated April 27, 2022. Part of the CareCompare services from the federal government.

Doctor and Dentist Ratings and Reviews

Patients may review and rate anyone called Doctor (such as chiropractors and dentists) in the US and selected countries at this site: RateMDs.com. As of January 2023, few physicians had at least 30 patient ratings. Most physicians only have one or a handful of patient ratings. Ratings may also be quite old. On some doctors we checked, the most recent was 2018, or 2017. Doctors are rated on their staff, their punctuality, helpfulness and knowledge. Unable to sort list by rankings or number of ratings. Consumers may add a comment. Be VERY CAUTIOUS in using these ratings as the results may NOT be valid.

Fertility Clinic Success Rates – ART Report (CDC)

Find Fertility Clinic Success rates in ART clinics (Assisted Reproductive Technology) in the US and Puerto Rico.  This 112-page report is by the CDC in conjunction with Reproductive Medicine societies. Shows success rates by age of woman, and percent of egg retrievals or embryo transfers from a donor that resulted in live births. In depth summaries are also available for each of 448 fertility clinics reporting 2019 data. Almost 40 clinics did not report results, even though they were required to. Success rates declined with age of woman. In evaluating fertility clinics, consumers can see how large or small the reproductive program is in any clinic or state. Published December 2021.

Home Health Compare – www.medicare.gov (all states) Editor's Pick

Home Health Compare is a free search tool from Medicare that gives detailed information about Medicare-certified home health agencies. Search by county or zip code and see performance scores related to home care services. Compare home health agencies on measures related to managing daily activities, pain, teaching patients or their caregivers, getting readmitted to the hospital and more. Five star rating system and actual scores. Patient satisfaction ratings included, with a national average of 78% who would recommend their agency. Report card shows 2020-21 data in the latest federal update February 2022. Part of the federal government Care Compare.

Hospital Compare – at medicare.gov (all states) Hospital star ratings, complications Editor's Pick

Visit Hospital Compare to find hospital star ratings and complications for hospitals in all states. Compare 3 hospitals at one time. Federal government (at medicare.gov) gives 1 to 5 stars and compares hospital ratings for heart attack (AMI), heart failure, pneumonia, COPD, stroke, hip & knee, preventing infections and surgical complications, timeliness of Emergency (ER) dept., use of medical imaging. Most data are from calendar 2021, but may vary by measure. Includes death rate comparisons from heart failure, heart attack, pneumonia, COPD, stroke, CABG; and return to hospital (readmission) rates. Click on Timely & Effective Care, or Complications. Shows patient satisfaction HCAHPS ratings (patient experience opinions) from 2021. Some info on colonoscopies and cataracts. Editor’s Pick because it’s the best of what is out there. The federal government standardized broad ratings for all hospitals, and most ratings are based on more than just Medicare patients. Small volume hospitals will not show data for some measures. Graphs are no longer available. Today’s stars may reflect older data than shown at the website. Read the fine print. Updated October 2022.

How Good is US healthcare?

Just how good is US healthcare? Compare the United States with Canada, Australia, France, Germany, Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden, UK and many other countries on longevity, key healthcare performance measures, and non-medical determinants such as smoking and obesity. 2022 interactive database shows relative actual scores from OECD’s international 2020 and 2021 results. Older results are also shown. In general, the database is complex due to its detail. Many people will have difficulty finding the higher level comparisons they wish. Trends in health expenditures as a percent of GDP are shown. The US outranks all at 17.8% share of GDP (estimated for 2021). An interesting comparison is that the US topped all other countries with 42.8% measured obesity in the total population in 2019, compared to the next country of Mexico at 36% (2018-2020 data). Find obesity under Non-Medical Determinants of Health. Countries like Japan and Korea came in at a 5-7% range. Updated November 2022.

Trauma Programs: Verified Trauma Centers (ACS)

Find hospital trauma programs that are Verified Trauma Centers by ACS. Level I, II and III Trauma Centers are listed here, by city or state (and other international locations), at the American College of Surgeons’ (ACS) website. Trauma Center designation is a voluntary process that hospitals may choose to pursue for Adult and/or Pediatric care. Level I is the highest level of five levels. A description of what’s expected to be available at each level can be found at the American Trauma Society.

VA Hospital, Medical Facility Inspection Reports

Find VA hospital and medical facility inspection reports. The Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General (OIG) makes its VA Medical Center inspection reports available online. Types of reports include audits, healthcare investigations, inspections and more. Outpatient clinics and nursing homes are included. Listed by date; use filters on right within each category to select location. Updated 2022.

VA Medical Facilities Locator & Directory – Veterans

Easy to use directory to look up a VA medical facility. The Department of Veterans Affairs provides a convenient search tool to find the location of medical facilities such as hospitals and clinics. Facilities in the US, American Samoa, Philippine Islands, Guam, Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands are all listed.