CMS certification 010019
Helen Keller Hospital
1300 South Montgomery Avenue, Sheffield, AL 35660
Helen Keller Hospital has a CMS overall rating of 2 out of 5 stars. 80% of patients who answered CMS's national survey would definitely recommend it, against a US average of 71%. Of the 19 death, complication, infection and readmission measures CMS could compare, it does better than the nation on 2 and worse on 2. Emergency patients spend a median of 3 h 8 min in its emergency department before leaving (US median 2 h 42 min).
Every figure on this page is published by CMS; we arrange and explain it, and score nothing ourselves.
What patients said
Answers from patients who stayed here, collected by CMS in the national HCAHPS survey: 425 completed surveys, 18% response rate, Oct 2024 – Sep 2025.
Emergency department
How long emergency patients spent here and how some time-critical care went, from CMS's timely and effective care measures, Oct 2024 – Sep 2025. CMS classes this emergency department's patient volume as medium; busier departments tend to have longer times, so the national median for departments of the same volume is shown too. These are medians over a year of visits, not a live wait time.
| Measure | This hospital | AL | US |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median time in the emergency department before leaving Lower is better · 356 visits sampled · US median for EDs of the same volume: 2 h 45 min | 3 h 8 min | 2 h 29 min | 2 h 42 min |
| Left before being seen Lower is better · 34,390 patients | 3% | 2% | 2% |
| Stroke symptoms: brain scan read within 45 minutes Higher is better · 16 patients | 75% | 66% | 69% |
| Severe sepsis and septic shock: all recommended care given Higher is better · 509 patients | 60% | 64% | 65% |
How Helen Keller Hospital compares with nearby hospitals
The closest hospitals of the same kind that CMS rates or surveys - the same city first, then the same county and ZIP area. Every figure is CMS's: the overall star rating, the share of patients who would definitely recommend the hospital, the median time emergency patients spent before leaving, and how many death, complication, infection and readmission measures CMS found better or worse than the national rate.
| Hospital | CMS stars | Would recommend | ER median time | Vs the nation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Helen Keller HospitalThis hospital | 2/5 | 80% | 3 h 8 min | 2 better 2 worse |
| North Alabama Shoals HospitalSame county · Muscle Shoals | Not rated | 84% | 1 h 43 min | No different |
| Russellville HospitalSame ZIP area · Russellville | 4/5 | 66% | 1 h 41 min | No different |
| North Alabama Medical CenterSame ZIP area · Florence | 2/5 | 55% | 2 h 27 min | 5 better 3 worse |
| Athens Limestone HospitalSame ZIP area · Athens | 2/5 | 73% | 2 h 58 min | 1 better 3 worse |
| Decatur Morgan Hospital - Decatur CampusSame ZIP area · Decatur | 3/5 | 63% | 2 h 40 min | 2 better 1 worse |
Hospitals differ in size and in how sick their patients are. CMS adjusts its outcome measures for that, but a star or a percentage is a starting point for questions, not a verdict.
Deaths
How many patients died within 30 days of admission, adjusted by CMS for how sick they were. Lower is better. Data from Jul 2022 – Jun 2025.
| Measure | CMS comparison | This hospital | National |
|---|---|---|---|
| All patients, hospital-wide 1,498 cases | Too few cases | 5.2% | 3.9% |
| Heart failure 221 cases | Too few cases | 17.8% | 11.1% |
| Pneumonia 242 cases | Too few cases | 14.6% | 15.2% |
| Stroke 76 cases | Too few cases | 21.9% | 11.9% |
| COPD 134 cases | Too few cases | 8.8% | 8.6% |
2 more measures had too few cases here to report.
Complications
How often patients had serious complications, most of them after surgery, adjusted for how sick they were. Lower is better. Data from Jul 2022 – Jun 2024.
| Measure | CMS comparison | This hospital | National |
|---|---|---|---|
| Serious complications, combined measure | No different | 0.93 likely 0.49 – 1.36 | 1 |
| After hip or knee replacement 27 cases | Too few cases | 5.6% | 4.1% |
| Pressure ulcers (bed sores) 2,416 cases | No different | 0.31 per 1,000 likely 0 per 1,000 – 1.26 per 1,000 | 0.63 per 1,000 |
| Collapsed lung caused by a procedure 2,964 cases | No different | 0.19 per 1,000 likely 0 per 1,000 – 0.41 per 1,000 | 0.21 per 1,000 |
| Broken bones from falls in the hospital 2,871 cases | No different | 0.29 per 1,000 likely 0.08 per 1,000 – 0.5 per 1,000 | 0.27 per 1,000 |
| Bleeding or hematoma after surgery 319 cases | No different | 2.83 per 1,000 likely 1.15 per 1,000 – 4.52 per 1,000 | 2.34 per 1,000 |
| Blood clots in the lungs or legs after surgery 324 cases | No different | 3.93 per 1,000 likely 1.47 per 1,000 – 6.39 per 1,000 | 3.52 per 1,000 |
| Surgical wound splitting open 108 cases | No different | 2.02 per 1,000 likely 0.52 per 1,000 – 3.53 per 1,000 | 1.77 per 1,000 |
| Accidental cut or tear during abdominal surgery 440 cases | No different | 0.94 per 1,000 likely 0 per 1,000 – 1.97 per 1,000 | 1.06 per 1,000 |
4 more measures had too few cases here to report.
Infections caught in the hospital
Standardized infection ratio: 1.0 means as many infections as CMS predicted for a hospital like this one. Lower is better. Data from Oct 2024 – Sep 2025.
| Measure | CMS comparison | This hospital | National |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bloodstream infections from central lines (CLABSI) | No different | 0 | 1 |
| Urinary tract infections from catheters (CAUTI) | No different | 0.52 likely 0.09 – 1.73 | 1 |
| Surgical site infections after colon surgery | No different | 2.66 likely 0.84 – 6.41 | 1 |
| MRSA bloodstream infections | No different | 0 | 1 |
| C. diff intestinal infections | No different | 0.51 likely 0.21 – 1.07 | 1 |
1 more measure had too few cases here to report.
Readmissions and return visits
How often patients had to come back to a hospital after going home. Lower is better. Data from Jul 2023 – Jun 2025.
| Measure | CMS comparison | This hospital | National |
|---|---|---|---|
| Readmitted after heart failure 312 cases | Too few cases | 20.6% | 21.3% |
| Readmitted after pneumonia 382 cases | Too few cases | 17.4% | 17.3% |
| Readmitted after COPD 209 cases | Too few cases | 20.6% | 20% |
| Readmitted after hip or knee replacement 26 cases | Too few cases | 7.3% | 5.8% |
| Days back in hospital after heart failure 247 cases | Too few cases | 9.6 days per 100 | — |
| Days back in hospital after pneumonia 258 cases | Too few cases | 25.5 days per 100 | — |
| Unplanned visits after an outpatient colonoscopy 890 cases | No different | 13.5 per 1,000 likely 10.3 per 1,000 – 17.6 per 1,000 | 13 per 1,000 |
| Unplanned visits after outpatient surgery 262 cases | No different | 0.9 likely 0.7 – 1.2 | — |
6 more measures had too few cases here to report.
Clinicians registered at this address
54 clinicians give this hospital's street address as their practice location in NPPES, the federal provider registry. The same address can take in offices and clinics in the building, and a listing does not prove admitting privileges or current employment.
| Specialty | Clinicians |
|---|---|
| Nurse Anesthetist, Certified Registered | 11 |
| Family | 5 |
| Anesthesiology | 4 |
| Diagnostic Radiology | 4 |
| Nurse Practitioner | 4 |
| Hospitalist | 3 |
| Pharmacist | 3 |
| Acute Care | 2 |
| Adult Health | 2 |
| Anatomic Pathology & Clinical Pathology | 2 |
| Critical Care Medicine | 2 |
| Physical Therapist | 2 |
First 12 alphabetically
How to read this page
- Everything here is published by CMS on Care Compare. We arrange it and explain it; the star ratings and the better / worse verdicts are CMS's, not ours.
- “No different” is the most common result on most measures at most hospitals. CMS only calls a result better or worse when the difference from the national rate is statistically clear.
- Death, complication and readmission rates are adjusted by CMS for how sick patients were, so hospitals that treat sicker patients can be compared fairly.
- Infection results are ratios: 1.0 means as many infections as CMS predicted for a hospital like this one, below 1.0 is fewer.
- These are hospital-wide results. They do not rate an individual doctor, nurse or department, and they are not medical advice.
CMS Care Compare data retrieved 4 Oct 2026, refreshed weekly. Where this data comes from and how we handle it · Report an error
Common questions about Helen Keller Hospital
Is Helen Keller Hospital a good hospital?
Helen Keller Hospital has a CMS overall rating of 2 out of 5 stars. Of the 19 death, complication, infection and readmission measures CMS could compare, it does better than the nation on 2 and worse on 2. These are hospital-wide results published by CMS; they do not rate individual doctors or departments.
Would patients recommend Helen Keller Hospital?
80% of patients who answered CMS's national survey would definitely recommend it, against a US average of 71%. The figure comes from 425 completed HCAHPS surveys.
How long is the wait in the Helen Keller Hospital emergency room?
Emergency patients spend a median of 3 h 8 min in its emergency department before leaving (US median 2 h 42 min). Among US emergency departments with medium patient volume, like this one, the median is 2 h 45 min. 3% of emergency patients left before being seen (US 2%). These are medians over a year of visits, not a live wait time.