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01-05-2015 | Ischemic Heart Disease (D Mukherjee, Section Editor)

Racial Disparities in Outcomes After Cardiac Surgery: the Role of Hospital Quality

Authors: Rohan Khera, Mary Vaughan-Sarrazin, Gary E. Rosenthal, Saket Girotra

Published in: Current Cardiology Reports | Issue 5/2015

Abstract

Patients from racial and ethnic minorities experience higher mortality after cardiac surgery compared to white patients, both during the early postoperative phase as well as long term. A number of factors likely explain poor outcomes in black and minority patients, which include differences in biology, comorbid health conditions, socioeconomic background, and quality of hospital care. Recent evidence suggests that a major factor underlying excess mortality in these groups is due to their over-representation in low-quality hospitals, where all patients regardless of race have worse outcomes. In this review, we examine the factors underlying racial disparities in outcomes after cardiac surgery, with a primary focus on the role of hospital quality.

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Title: Racial Disparities in Outcomes After Cardiac Surgery: the Role of Hospital Quality
Authors: Rohan Khera
Mary Vaughan-Sarrazin
Gary E. Rosenthal
Saket Girotra
Publication date: 01-05-2015
Publisher: Springer US
Published in: Current Cardiology Reports / Issue 5/2015
Print ISSN: 1523-3782
Electronic ISSN: 1534-3170
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11886-015-0587-7

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