CMS certification 050036
Bakersfield Memorial Hospital
420 34th St, Bakersfield, CA 93301
Bakersfield Memorial Hospital has a CMS overall rating of 3 out of 5 stars. 74% of patients who answered CMS's national survey would definitely recommend it, against a US average of 71%. Of the 27 death, complication, infection and readmission measures CMS could compare, it does better than the nation on 3 and worse on 2. Emergency patients spend a median of 4 h 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: 479 completed surveys, 12% 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 very high; 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 | CA | US |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median time in the emergency department before leaving Lower is better · 347 visits sampled · US median for EDs of the same volume: 3 h 21 min | 4 h | 2 h 54 min | 2 h 42 min |
| Left before being seen Lower is better · 102,435 patients | 4% | 2% | 2% |
| Severe sepsis and septic shock: all recommended care given Higher is better · 284 patients | 67% | 70% | 65% |
How Bakersfield Memorial 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bakersfield Memorial HospitalThis hospital | 3/5 | 74% | 4 h | 3 better 2 worse |
| Adventist Health BakersfieldSame city | 2/5 | 68% | 4 h 28 min | 1 better 5 worse |
| Mercy HospitalSame city | 3/5 | 67% | 3 h 13 min | 3 better 2 worse |
| Kern Medical CenterSame city | 1/5 | 60% | 5 h 6 min | 1 better |
| Kern Valley Healthcare DistrictSame county · Lake Isabella | 3/5 | 50% | 2 h 43 min | No different |
| Adventist Health DelanoSame county · Delano | 2/5 | 62% | 2 h 30 min | 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. All hospitals in Bakersfield.
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 2,744 cases | Too few cases | 4.4% | 3.9% |
| Heart attack 145 cases | Too few cases | 14.2% | 11.9% |
| Heart failure 299 cases | Too few cases | 10.3% | 11.1% |
| Pneumonia 230 cases | Too few cases | 18.2% | 15.2% |
| Stroke 315 cases | Too few cases | 11.3% | 11.9% |
| COPD 107 cases | Too few cases | 9.7% | 8.6% |
| Heart bypass surgery (CABG) 36 cases | Too few cases | 3.4% | 2.4% |
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 | 0.88 likely 0.56 – 1.2 | 1 |
| After hip or knee replacement 41 cases | Too few cases | 3.4% | 4.1% |
| Deaths after a serious but treatable surgical complication 91 cases | No different | 194.15 per 1,000 likely 152.12 per 1,000 – 236.18 per 1,000 | 173.3 per 1,000 |
| Pressure ulcers (bed sores) 4,861 cases | No different | 0.67 per 1,000 likely 0.02 per 1,000 – 1.32 per 1,000 | 0.63 per 1,000 |
| Collapsed lung caused by a procedure 5,617 cases | No different | 0.15 per 1,000 likely 0 per 1,000 – 0.36 per 1,000 | 0.21 per 1,000 |
| Broken bones from falls in the hospital 5,722 cases | No different | 0.22 per 1,000 likely 0.03 per 1,000 – 0.42 per 1,000 | 0.27 per 1,000 |
| Bleeding or hematoma after surgery 1,433 cases | No different | 1.83 per 1,000 likely 0.39 per 1,000 – 3.26 per 1,000 | 2.34 per 1,000 |
| Kidney injury needing dialysis after surgery 447 cases | No different | 1.87 per 1,000 likely 0.25 per 1,000 – 3.49 per 1,000 | 1.67 per 1,000 |
| Breathing failure after surgery 467 cases | No different | 7.34 per 1,000 likely 0.31 per 1,000 – 14.37 per 1,000 | 9.42 per 1,000 |
| Blood clots in the lungs or legs after surgery 1,457 cases | No different | 3.12 per 1,000 likely 1.04 per 1,000 – 5.2 per 1,000 | 3.52 per 1,000 |
| Sepsis after surgery 437 cases | No different | 4.2 per 1,000 likely 0.31 per 1,000 – 8.09 per 1,000 | 5.27 per 1,000 |
| Surgical wound splitting open 233 cases | No different | 1.63 per 1,000 likely 0.16 per 1,000 – 3.1 per 1,000 | 1.77 per 1,000 |
| Accidental cut or tear during abdominal surgery 1,062 cases | No different | 0.89 per 1,000 likely 0 per 1,000 – 1.9 per 1,000 | 1.06 per 1,000 |
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) | Better | 0.34 likely 0.09 – 0.94 | 1 |
| Urinary tract infections from catheters (CAUTI) | Better | 0.1 likely 0.01 – 0.49 | 1 |
| Surgical site infections after colon surgery | No different | 0.39 likely 0.02 – 1.93 | 1 |
| Surgical site infections after abdominal hysterectomy | No different | 0 | 1 |
| MRSA bloodstream infections | No different | 0.72 likely 0.23 – 1.72 | 1 |
| C. diff intestinal infections | Better | 0.11 likely 0.03 – 0.26 | 1 |
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 a heart attack 242 cases | Too few cases | 14.3% | 14.4% |
| Readmitted after heart failure 543 cases | Too few cases | 21.3% | 21.3% |
| Readmitted after pneumonia 311 cases | Too few cases | 18.5% | 17.3% |
| Readmitted after COPD 172 cases | Too few cases | 20.5% | 20% |
| Readmitted after heart bypass surgery 48 cases | Too few cases | 11.7% | 11% |
| Readmitted after hip or knee replacement 35 cases | Too few cases | 5.8% | 5.8% |
| Days back in hospital after a heart attack 150 cases | Too few cases | 7.5 days per 100 | — |
| Days back in hospital after heart failure 355 cases | Too few cases | -3.1 days per 100 | — |
| Days back in hospital after pneumonia 225 cases | Too few cases | 7.8 days per 100 | — |
| Unplanned visits after an outpatient colonoscopy 279 cases | No different | 13.6 per 1,000 likely 10.4 per 1,000 – 18.3 per 1,000 | 13 per 1,000 |
| Hospital admissions during outpatient chemotherapy 274 cases | No different | 12.2 per 100 likely 9.2 per 100 – 16 per 100 | 10.7 per 100 |
| ER visits during outpatient chemotherapy 274 cases | No different | 5.4 per 100 likely 3.8 per 100 – 7.6 per 100 | 5.4 per 100 |
| Unplanned visits after outpatient surgery 210 cases | No different | 0.9 likely 0.6 – 1.2 | — |
1 more measure had too few cases here to report.
Clinicians registered at this address
79 clinicians give this hospital's street address as their practice location in NPPES, the federal provider registry, plus 32 residents and trainees. 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 |
|---|---|
| Anesthesiology | 18 |
| Emergency Medicine | 11 |
| Family | 9 |
| Internal Medicine | 8 |
| Pharmacist | 5 |
| Nurse Anesthetist, Certified Registered | 4 |
| Pediatrics | 3 |
| Physician Assistant | 3 |
| Speech-Language Pathologist | 3 |
| Clinical | 2 |
| Nurse Practitioner | 2 |
| Occupational 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 Bakersfield Memorial Hospital
Is Bakersfield Memorial Hospital a good hospital?
Bakersfield Memorial Hospital has a CMS overall rating of 3 out of 5 stars. Of the 27 death, complication, infection and readmission measures CMS could compare, it does better than the nation on 3 and worse on 2. These are hospital-wide results published by CMS; they do not rate individual doctors or departments.
Would patients recommend Bakersfield Memorial Hospital?
74% of patients who answered CMS's national survey would definitely recommend it, against a US average of 71%. The figure comes from 479 completed HCAHPS surveys.
How long is the wait in the Bakersfield Memorial Hospital emergency room?
Emergency patients spend a median of 4 h in its emergency department before leaving (US median 2 h 42 min). Among US emergency departments with very high patient volume, like this one, the median is 3 h 21 min. 4% of emergency patients left before being seen (US 2%). These are medians over a year of visits, not a live wait time.