UT Health East Texas Athens Hospital
Acute Care · For-profit · Athens, TX
2
CMS overall rating: Below 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.
Mortality
1 of 6 measures below average
Safety of Care
1 better, 1 worse than average (of 5)
Readmission
1 of 6 measures below average
Patient Experience
15 measures reported
Timely & Effective Care
10 measures reported
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. | 7.9% | 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. | 12% | About the national median Compared with the national median |
| Heart failure deaths Death rate within 30 days for patients admitted with heart failure. | 14.8% | Below 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. | 4.7% | Below the national median (3.9%) Compared with the national median |
| Pneumonia deaths Death rate within 30 days for patients admitted with pneumonia. | 17% | Below the national median (15.2%) Compared with the national median |
| Stroke deaths Death rate within 30 days for patients admitted with a stroke. | 11.9% | About the national median 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. |
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. | 1.99 | No different than national benchmark |
| C. diff infections Clostridioides difficile, an intestinal infection that often follows antibiotic treatment. | 0.14 | Better than national benchmark |
| Surgical infections — colon surgery Infections at the surgical site after colon surgery. | 0.00 | No different than national benchmark |
| Urinary tract infections (CAUTI) Infections linked to urinary catheters, as a ratio to the number expected. Below 1.0 is better than expected. | 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. | Not reported | Too few cases to report reliably (fewer than 25). |
| MRSA blood infections Bloodstream infections from MRSA, a staph bacteria resistant to common antibiotics. | Not reported | Fewer than 25 patients — results are not reported. |
| Surgical infections — hysterectomy Infections at the surgical site after abdominal hysterectomy. | Not reported | Fewer than 25 patients — results are not reported. |
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 failure | -3.8 days | Better than the national median (+1.3 days) Compared with the national median |
| Extra days in care — pneumonia | +15.1 days | Below the national median (+3.9 days) Compared with the national median |
| Ratio of unplanned hospital visits after hospital outpatient surgery | 1.1 | No different than national benchmark |
| Returns after COPD | 20.2% | About the national median Compared with the national median |
| Returns after heart attack | 14.4% | About the national median Compared with the national median |
| Returns after heart failure | 22.8% | Below the national median (21.3%) Compared with the national median |
| Returns after outpatient colonoscopy Patients who had to visit a hospital within 7 days of an outpatient colonoscopy. | 14.4% | No different than national benchmark |
| Returns after pneumonia | 18.4% | Below the national median (17.2%) 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. |
| 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. | Not reported | Too few cases to report reliably (fewer than 25). |
| Returns after bypass surgery | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
| Returns after hip/knee replacement | Not reported | Too few cases to report reliably (fewer than 25). |
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 | 82% | About the national median Compared with the national median |
| Doctors communicated well | 84% | Better than the national median (79%) Compared with the national median |
| Medicines were explained | 65% | Better than the national median (61%) Compared with the national median |
| Discharge information given | 86% | About the national median Compared with the national median |
| Room was always clean | 75% | About the national median Compared with the national median |
| Area was always quiet at night | 69% | Better than the national median (59%) Compared with the national median |
| Rated the hospital 9 or 10 out of 10 | 72% | About the national median Compared with the national median |
| Would definitely recommend | 72% | About the national median Compared with the national median |
Timeliness of Care
How quickly patients were treated and whether the hospital followed recommended steps of care.
| Measure | This hospital | Compared with other hospitals |
|---|---|---|
| Appropriate follow-up colonoscopy | 99% | About the national median Compared with the national median |
| Blood clot prevention Patients who received treatment to prevent blood clots on the day they arrived or the day after. Clots in the legs or lungs are a common and largely preventable hospital complication. | 99% | Better than the national median (90%) Compared with the national median |
| Blood clot prevention in the ICU | 99% | About the national median Compared with the national median |
| ER time — transferred patients | 356 min | Below the national median (293 min) Compared with the national median |
| ER visit length — all patients Median minutes from arriving at the ER to leaving, counting every patient — including mental health visits and transfers to another hospital. | 162 min | Below the national median (154 min) Compared with the national median |
| ER visit length — typical patient Median minutes from arriving at the ER to leaving, excluding mental health visits and transfers. This is the number most people mean by "ER wait time". | 155 min | About the national median Compared with the national median |
| Emergency department volume How busy the ER is overall. Not a quality score — but a very high-volume ER often means longer waits for less urgent problems. | Medium | No national comparison available |
| Left the ER without being seen Share of patients who gave up waiting and left before a clinician saw them. A practical signal of how crowded the ER runs. | 2% | Below the national median (1%) Compared with the national median |
| Safe use of opioids Patients prescribed two or more opioids at the same time, which raises overdose risk. Lower is better. | 16% | Below the national median (15%) Compared with the national median |
| Sepsis care bundle Patients with severe sepsis who received every recommended step of care within the required time window. Sepsis kills quickly, so completing all steps matters. | 80% | Better than the national median (65%) Compared with the national median |
| Septic shock — 3-hour bundle | 93% | Better than the national median (73%) Compared with the national median |
| Septic shock — 6-hour bundle | 96% | Better than the national median (88%) Compared with the national median |
| Severe sepsis — 3-hour bundle Patients with severe sepsis who got blood cultures, antibiotics and fluids within 3 hours. Every hour of delay raises the risk of death. | 87% | Better than the national median (82%) Compared with the national median |
| Severe sepsis — 6-hour bundle | 99% | Better than the national median (94%) Compared with the national median |
| Staff flu vaccination | 66% | Below the national median (79%) Compared with the national median |
| Stroke scan within 45 minutes Patients with stroke symptoms who got a brain scan within 45 minutes of arrival. Faster scans mean faster treatment. | 60% | Below the national median (74%) Compared with the national median |
| Stroke — blood thinner at discharge Stroke patients sent home on medication that lowers the risk of another stroke. | 98% | About the national median Compared with the national median |
| ER time — psychiatric patients Median ER minutes for patients with a mental health or substance use crisis. Often far longer than other patients because inpatient psychiatric beds are scarce. | Not reported | Too few cases to report reliably (fewer than 25). |
| Global Malnutrition Composite Score | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
| Global Malnutrition Composite Score: Malnutrition Diagnosis Documented | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
| Global Malnutrition Composite Score: Malnutrition Risk Screening | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
| Global Malnutrition Composite Score: Nutrition Assessment | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
| Global Malnutrition Composite Score: Nutritional Care Plan | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
| Heart attack — transferred for emergency treatment Patients with the most serious kind of heart attack (STEMI) who were moved to a hospital able to reopen the artery. Mostly reported by smaller hospitals without a cath lab. | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
| Improvement in Patient's Visual Function within 90 Days Following Cataract Surgery | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
| Opioid-related adverse events Patients who needed a reversal drug after being given opioids in the hospital — a sign the dose was too high. | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
| Severe high blood sugar events | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
| Severe low blood sugar events Patients on diabetes medication whose blood sugar fell to a dangerous level while in the hospital. | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
| Stroke — anticoagulation for atrial fibrillation | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
| Stroke — treatment started by day 2 | Not reported | Results are not available for this reporting period. |
Cost to Medicare
Medicare spending per patient: 1.08
What Medicare spent on an average patient here compared with the national average: 1.00 is exactly average, 0.94 is 6% less. This reflects cost to Medicare, not your out-of-pocket bill, and lower spending does not by itself mean better or worse care. This does not predict your own bill — what you pay depends on your insurance, your condition and the price the hospital negotiated with your plan. Ask the hospital's billing office for an estimate before a planned procedure.
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 Athens and the rest of Texas.
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Baylor Scott & White Medical Center - Centennial
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Baylor Scott & White Heart & Vascular Hospital - Dallas
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Important:
hospiguide.org is an independent informational resource. It is not affiliated
with, endorsed by, or connected to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
(CMS), the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, or Medicare.
This site does not provide medical advice and should not be used to decide
whether to seek or delay care — talk to a clinician about your situation.
Quality measures come from CMS public datasets, released August 13, 2026, and reflect
care delivered during earlier reporting periods, so they may not describe a
hospital as it operates today.
Always verify details at
Medicare.gov Care Compare
or by calling 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227).
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