VA puts hospital data on Data.gov

The Veterans Affairs Department is now putting raw data from its annual hospital report card online on Data.gov.

VA is posting data on quality of care, patient satisfaction, availability of services, wait times, medical staffing, patient outcomes and other topics in a machine-readable format for the first time, according to a news release.

“This report demonstrates VA’s determination to be open and accountable,” VA Secretary Eric Shinseki said.

VA issued its first public report card on patient quality and safety at Veterans Health Administration facilities in May 2008. The 1,400 hospitals in the system treat about 5 million patients a year.

The latest hospital report card showed improvements in some categories. For example, 94 percent of veterans were immunized against pneumonia, an increase of 4 percentage points from 2008 numbers. However, women and minority veterans reported lower levels of satisfaction with the care they received.