Despite Probe, Hospital Wins High Rating

A hospital made notorious by a fired worker who claimed to be an “Angel of Death” scored 95 out of a possible 100 in a recent independent review of, among other things, patient care, a spokeswoman announced Thursday.

Glendale Adventist Medical Center was given the rating after “an extensive, four-day review” by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Health Care Organizations, which conducts surveys at the request of hospitals nationwide, said hospital spokeswoman Alicia Gonzalez.

“We believe this score accurately reflects the quality of care our patients receive, and we look forward to the final report on this outstanding achievement,” Robert G. Carmen, president and CEO of the hospital, said in a prepared statement.

Because the accreditation report is not final, Julia Roberts, a spokeswoman for the accreditation commission, declined to discuss its findings.

In 1995, 59% of the hospitals surveyed scored 90 or better. According to a commission report, 36% scored between 80 and 89 and 5% scored between 70 and 79. No hospitals scored below 70, the report said.

A breakdown of scores for 1998 surveys will not be available until early next year, Roberts said.

The commission accredits about 5,100 of the nation’s estimated 6,300 hospitals, Roberts said.

This year’s survey was conducted during May, in the midst of a police investigation into the activities of fired respiratory therapist Efren Saldivar, who reportedly told police he killed as many as 50 terminally ill patients, but later recanted his claim on national television. Saldivar has not been charged.

Police are examining several hundred cases in which Saldivar had contact with patients who died soon afterward. Glendale Police Sgt. Rick Young said earlier this month that investigators may begin exhuming bodies in the case as soon as July. Young declined to comment Thursday.

In 1995, when Saldivar was still employed at the hospital and would have been in the midst of his once-acknowledged rampage, Glendale Adventist received a score of 88 on the survey, said Roberts, the spokeswoman for the accreditation group.