USCareCheck

CMS certification 110043

St Joseph's Hospital - Savannah

11705 Mercy Boulevard, Savannah, GA 31419

Acute Care Hospitals Emergency services

St Joseph's Hospital - Savannah has a CMS overall rating of 2 out of 5 stars. 75% of patients who answered CMS's national survey would definitely recommend it, against a US average of 71%. Of the 24 death, complication, infection and readmission measures CMS could compare, it does better than the nation on 1 and worse on 3. Emergency patients spend a median of 3 h 23 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.

CMS overall rating 2/5 CMS summary of quality measures
Would definitely recommend 75% US average 71%
Patient survey rating 3/5 553 completed surveys
Compared with the nation 3 worse 1 better of 24 measures CMS could compare

What patients said

Answers from patients who stayed here, collected by CMS in the national HCAHPS survey: 553 completed surveys, 24% response rate, Oct 2024 – Sep 2025.

Would definitely recommend the hospital
75%
GA 71% · US 71% · 4 of 5 stars
Rated the hospital 9 or 10 out of 10
70%
GA 71% · US 72% · 3 of 5 stars
Nurses always communicated well
76%
GA 79% · US 80% · 3 of 5 stars
Doctors always communicated well
77%
GA 79% · US 80% · 3 of 5 stars
Staff always explained new medicines
62%
GA 60% · US 62% · 3 of 5 stars
Given information about recovering at home
84%
GA 85% · US 86% · 3 of 5 stars
Room was always clean
69%
GA 72% · US 74% · 3 of 5 stars
Always quiet at night
54%
GA 64% · US 60% · 3 of 5 stars

This hospital Georgia average US average

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 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 GA US
Median time in the emergency department before leaving Lower is better · 369 visits sampled · US median for EDs of the same volume: 3 h 22 min 3 h 23 min 2 h 42 min 2 h 42 min
Left before being seen Lower is better · 47,618 patients 6% 2% 2%
Stroke symptoms: brain scan read within 45 minutes Higher is better · 24 patients 92% 70% 69%
Severe sepsis and septic shock: all recommended care given Higher is better · 459 patients 52% 63% 65%

How St Joseph's Hospital - Savannah 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
St Joseph's Hospital - SavannahThis hospital2/575%3 h 23 min1 better 3 worse
Candler HospitalSame city2/569%3 h 16 min2 better 3 worse
Savannah Health Services LLC Dba Memorial Health University Medical CenterSame city1/564%2 h 42 min4 better 5 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 Savannah.

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 3,588 cases Too few cases 3.8% 3.9%
Heart attack 190 cases Too few cases 14.5% 11.9%
Heart failure 337 cases Too few cases 14.8% 11.1%
Pneumonia 255 cases Too few cases 14.8% 15.2%
Stroke 249 cases Too few cases 10.3% 11.9%
COPD 105 cases Too few cases 10.2% 8.6%
Heart bypass surgery (CABG) 87 cases Too few cases 3.2% 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.

2 worse than the nation 10 no different
Measure CMS comparison This hospital National
Serious complications, combined measure Worse 2.17 likely 1.85 – 2.49 1
After hip or knee replacement 84 cases Too few cases 5% 4.1%
Deaths after a serious but treatable surgical complication 56 cases No different 175.65 per 1,000 likely 123.73 per 1,000 – 227.58 per 1,000 173.3 per 1,000
Pressure ulcers (bed sores) 3,990 cases Worse 4.77 per 1,000 likely 4.03 per 1,000 – 5.51 per 1,000 0.63 per 1,000
Collapsed lung caused by a procedure 5,613 cases No different 0.31 per 1,000 likely 0.11 per 1,000 – 0.52 per 1,000 0.21 per 1,000
Broken bones from falls in the hospital 5,616 cases No different 0.37 per 1,000 likely 0.17 per 1,000 – 0.56 per 1,000 0.27 per 1,000
Bleeding or hematoma after surgery 1,952 cases No different 2.12 per 1,000 likely 0.74 per 1,000 – 3.51 per 1,000 2.34 per 1,000
Kidney injury needing dialysis after surgery 832 cases No different 1.69 per 1,000 likely 0.15 per 1,000 – 3.22 per 1,000 1.67 per 1,000
Breathing failure after surgery 793 cases No different 7.7 per 1,000 likely 1.65 per 1,000 – 13.75 per 1,000 9.42 per 1,000
Blood clots in the lungs or legs after surgery 2,025 cases No different 3.61 per 1,000 likely 1.66 per 1,000 – 5.56 per 1,000 3.52 per 1,000
Sepsis after surgery 795 cases No different 5.04 per 1,000 likely 1.4 per 1,000 – 8.69 per 1,000 5.27 per 1,000
Surgical wound splitting open 236 cases No different 1.66 per 1,000 likely 0.17 per 1,000 – 3.15 per 1,000 1.77 per 1,000
Accidental cut or tear during abdominal surgery 838 cases No different 0.9 per 1,000 likely 0 per 1,000 – 1.91 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.

1 better than the nation 4 no different
Measure CMS comparison This hospital National
Bloodstream infections from central lines (CLABSI) No different 0.59 likely 0.26 – 1.17 1
Urinary tract infections from catheters (CAUTI) No different 0.77 likely 0.42 – 1.31 1
Surgical site infections after colon surgery No different 1.46 likely 0.37 – 3.97 1
MRSA bloodstream infections No different 0.23 likely 0.01 – 1.14 1
C. diff intestinal infections Better 0.52 likely 0.32 – 0.81 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.

2 no different
Measure CMS comparison This hospital National
Readmitted after a heart attack 350 cases Too few cases 13.3% 14.4%
Readmitted after heart failure 686 cases Too few cases 20.1% 21.3%
Readmitted after pneumonia 409 cases Too few cases 17% 17.3%
Readmitted after COPD 182 cases Too few cases 19.9% 20%
Readmitted after heart bypass surgery 141 cases Too few cases 10.4% 11%
Readmitted after hip or knee replacement 78 cases Too few cases 6.3% 5.8%
Days back in hospital after a heart attack 195 cases Too few cases 9 days per 100 —
Days back in hospital after heart failure 398 cases Too few cases -11.8 days per 100 —
Days back in hospital after pneumonia 260 cases Too few cases 1.7 days per 100 —
Unplanned visits after an outpatient colonoscopy 852 cases No different 13.7 per 1,000 likely 10.4 per 1,000 – 18.1 per 1,000 13 per 1,000
Unplanned visits after outpatient surgery 947 cases No different 0.8 likely 0.6 – 1 —

3 more measures had too few cases here to report.

Clinicians registered at this address

41 clinicians give this hospital's street address as their practice location in NPPES, the federal provider registry, plus 5 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
Anesthesiologist Assistant 10
Nurse Anesthetist, Certified Registered 9
Anesthesiology 5
Medical 2
Physician Assistant 2
Acute Care 1
Adult Health 1
Critical Care 1
Critical Care Medicine 1
Emergency Medicine 1
Internal Medicine 1
Medical-Surgical 1

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 St Joseph's Hospital - Savannah

Is St Joseph's Hospital - Savannah a good hospital?

St Joseph's Hospital - Savannah has a CMS overall rating of 2 out of 5 stars. Of the 24 death, complication, infection and readmission measures CMS could compare, it does better than the nation on 1 and worse on 3. These are hospital-wide results published by CMS; they do not rate individual doctors or departments.

Would patients recommend St Joseph's Hospital - Savannah?

75% of patients who answered CMS's national survey would definitely recommend it, against a US average of 71%. The figure comes from 553 completed HCAHPS surveys.

How long is the wait in the St Joseph's Hospital - Savannah emergency room?

Emergency patients spend a median of 3 h 23 min in its emergency department before leaving (US median 2 h 42 min). Among US emergency departments with high patient volume, like this one, the median is 3 h 22 min. 6% of emergency patients left before being seen (US 2%). These are medians over a year of visits, not a live wait time.