Spartanburg Medical Center has earned a distinguished three-star rating from the Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) for its patient care and outcomes in isolated coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) procedures. The three-star rating, which denotes the highest category of quality, places Spartanburg Medical Center among the elite for heart bypass surgery in the U.S. and Canada. 

The STS star rating system is one of the most sophisticated and highly regarded overall measures of quality in health care, rating the benchmarked outcomes of cardiothoracic surgery programs across the U.S. and Canada. The star rating is calculated using a combination of quality measures for specific procedures performed by an STS Adult Cardiac Surgery Database participant. 

A three-star cardiac surgical program is a sought-after designation, said Jason Rousseau, DO, a cardiothoracic surgeon with Medical Group of the Carolinas – Cardiothoracic & Vascular Surgery. 

“This rating is a direct reflection of the attentive care our staff provides to each patient, as well as the quality outcomes we seek as healthcare providers for our cardiac surgery patients,” Dr. Rousseau said. “Spartanburg Regional continues to deliver exceptional heart care to our community.” 

Approximately 20% of participants receive a three-star rating for isolated CABG surgery. The latest analysis of data for CABG surgery covers a three-year period, from January 2022 to December 2024, and includes 1,030 participants. 

“The Society of Thoracic Surgeons congratulates STS National Database participants who have received three-star ratings,” said David M. Shahian, MD, chair of the Task Force on Quality Measurement. “Participation in the database and public reporting demonstrates a commitment to quality improvement in healthcare delivery and helps provide patients and their families with meaningful information to help them make informed decisions about health care.” 

The STS National Database was established in 1989 as an initiative for quality improvement and patient safety among cardiothoracic surgeons. The database includes four components: the Adult Cardiac Surgery Database (ACSD), the Congenital Heart Surgery Database (CHSD), the General Thoracic Surgery Database (GTSD), and the Mechanical Circulatory Support Database (Intermacs).  

The STS ACSD houses approximately 6.9 million surgical records and gathers information from more than 3,800 participating physicians, including surgeons and anesthesiologists from more than 90% of groups that perform heart surgery in the U.S. STS public reporting online enables STS ACSD participants to voluntarily report to each other and the public on their heart surgery scores and star ratings. 

For more information about cardiothoracic surgery, click here.