Charleston VA Medical Center
VA Hospital · Veterans Health Administration · Charleston, SC
CMS overall rating: Much above average
CMS combines mortality, safety, readmission, patient experience and timeliness measures into this single 1–5 star summary. It is a useful starting point, but the measures below matter more when you know which kind of care you need.
Quality at a glance
How this hospital's measures compare with other hospitals nationally, as counted by CMS.
Death Rates
How often patients died within 30 days of being treated for certain conditions. Lower is better.
| Measure | This hospital | Compared with other hospitals |
|---|---|---|
| COPD deaths Death rate within 30 days for patients admitted with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. | 7.5% | Better than the national median (8.5%) Compared with the national median |
| Heart attack deaths Of patients admitted for a heart attack, the share who died within 30 days — counted wherever they died, including at home. | 9.8% | Better than the national median (11.8%) Compared with the national median |
| Heart failure deaths Death rate within 30 days for patients admitted with heart failure. | 8.3% | Better than the national median (11%) Compared with the national median |
| Overall death rate Hospital-wide death rate across all conditions, adjusted for how sick patients were on arrival. The broadest mortality measure CMS reports. | 3.7% | Better than the national median (3.9%) Compared with the national median |
| Pneumonia deaths Death rate within 30 days for patients admitted with pneumonia. | 12.7% | Better than the national median (15.2%) Compared with the national median |
| Bypass surgery deaths Death rate within 30 days after coronary artery bypass graft surgery. | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
| Stroke deaths Death rate within 30 days for patients admitted with a stroke. | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
Safety & Infections
Infections and surgical complications that happened during a hospital stay. Lower is better.
| Measure | This hospital | Compared with other hospitals |
|---|---|---|
| Bloodstream infections (CLABSI) Infections entering the blood through a central line. Reported as a ratio: 1.0 means as many infections as expected for this hospital's patient mix, below 1.0 means fewer. | 0.00 | No different than national benchmark |
| Hip/knee replacement complications Serious complications within 90 days of elective hip or knee replacement, such as infection or the need for a repeat operation. | 3.2% | Better than the national median (4.1%) Compared with the national median |
| Urinary tract infections (CAUTI) Infections linked to urinary catheters, as a ratio to the number expected. Below 1.0 is better than expected. | 0.36 | No different than national benchmark |
| C. diff infections Clostridioides difficile, an intestinal infection that often follows antibiotic treatment. | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
| MRSA blood infections Bloodstream infections from MRSA, a staph bacteria resistant to common antibiotics. | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
| Surgical infections — colon surgery Infections at the surgical site after colon surgery. | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
| Surgical infections — hysterectomy Infections at the surgical site after abdominal hysterectomy. | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
Unplanned Returns
How often patients had to come back to a hospital within 30 days after being discharged. Lower is better.
| Measure | This hospital | Compared with other hospitals |
|---|---|---|
| Extra days in care — heart attack Days patients spent back in hospital care per 100 discharges, compared with what was expected. A negative number means fewer days than expected — better. | -8.6 days | Better than the national median (+4.2 days) Compared with the national median |
| Extra days in care — heart failure | +7.7 days | Below the national median (+1.3 days) Compared with the national median |
| Extra days in care — pneumonia | +36.8 days | Below the national median (+3.9 days) Compared with the national median |
| Returns after COPD | 19.3% | About the national median Compared with the national median |
| Returns after heart attack | 14.5% | About the national median Compared with the national median |
| Returns after heart failure | 21.4% | About the national median Compared with the national median |
| Returns after hip/knee replacement | 6.3% | Below the national median (5.8%) Compared with the national median |
| Returns after pneumonia | 17% | About the national median Compared with the national median |
| Admissions after chemotherapy | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
| ER visits after chemotherapy | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
| Ratio of unplanned hospital visits after hospital outpatient surgery | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
| Returns after bypass surgery | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
| Returns after outpatient colonoscopy Patients who had to visit a hospital within 7 days of an outpatient colonoscopy. | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
What Patients Said
Results from surveys of patients after they went home. Higher is better.
| Measure | This hospital | Compared with other hospitals |
|---|---|---|
| Nurses communicated well | 83% | About the national median Compared with the national median |
| Doctors communicated well | 86% | Better than the national median (79%) Compared with the national median |
| Medicines were explained | 72% | Better than the national median (61%) Compared with the national median |
| Discharge information given | 90% | About the national median Compared with the national median |
| Room was always clean | 70% | About the national median Compared with the national median |
| Area was always quiet at night | 61% | About the national median Compared with the national median |
| Rated the hospital 9 or 10 out of 10 | 81% | Better than the national median (72%) Compared with the national median |
| Would definitely recommend | 81% | Better than the national median (71%) Compared with the national median |
Location & directions
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.
In an emergency, call 911
Do not use this map to drive yourself to hospital during a medical emergency. Paramedics can begin treatment on the way and know which hospital has capacity tonight — no map can tell you that.
Verify this information
Everything on this page comes from public CMS datasets, released August 2026. Quality measures describe care delivered during earlier reporting periods, and services, staffing and phone numbers change. Confirm current details before you act on them:
View on Care Compare Call 1-800-MEDICARE
1-800-633-4227 · 24 hours a day, 7 days a week · TTY 1-877-486-2048
Compare with nearby hospitals
Other Medicare-certified hospitals in Charleston and the rest of South Carolina.
Roper Hospital
Bon Secours-ST Francis Xavier Hospital
Trident Medical Center
Musc Medical Center
Palmetto Lowcountry Behavioral Health
by CMS
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