Norwich – The William W. Backus Hospital announced Wednesday that it has been named a Top Performer on Key Quality Measures by The Joint Commission, the national organization that accredits health care organizations.

Backus is one of eight hospitals in the state to be recognized by The Joint Commission as a Top Performer on Key Quality Measures, and is one of 1,099 hospitals in the U.S. to earn this distinction for attaining and sustaining excellence in accountability measure performance. Other hospitals in Connecticut on this list were: St. Vincent’s Medical Center in Bridgeport; Griffin Hospital in Derby; John Dempsy Hospital in Farmington; the Albert J. Solit Children’s Center-South Campus, Middletown; Middlesex Hospital in Middletown; Day Kimball Healthcare in Putnam; and Saint Mary’s Hospital in Waterbury.

Backus was recognized for its achievements in the following measure sets: care of heart attack, heart failure and pneumonia patients, and surgical care. All the hospitals in the list were evaluated based on a set of accountability measures representing an evidence-based practice, such as giving aspirin at arrival for heart attack patients, or giving antibiotics one hour before surgery.

"The William W. Backus Hospital and all the Top Performer hospitals have demonstrated an exceptional commitment to quality improvement and they should be proud of their achievement," Dr. Mark Chassin, president and chief executive officer of The Joint Commission said in a news release.