CMS certification 340143
Catawba Valley Medical Center
810 Fairgrove Church Rd, Hickory, NC 28602
Catawba Valley Medical Center has a CMS overall rating of 2 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 25 death, complication, infection and readmission measures CMS could compare, it does better than the nation on 3 and worse on 5. Emergency patients spend a median of 3 h 48 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: 575 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 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 | NC | US |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median time in the emergency department before leaving Lower is better · 473 visits sampled · US median for EDs of the same volume: 3 h 22 min | 3 h 48 min | 3 h 7 min | 2 h 42 min |
| Median time for psychiatric and mental health patients Lower is better · 15 visits sampled | 5 h 3 min | 5 h | 4 h 17 min |
| Left before being seen Lower is better · 55,499 patients | 5% | 2% | 2% |
| Stroke symptoms: brain scan read within 45 minutes Higher is better · 29 patients | 72% | 71% | 69% |
| Severe sepsis and septic shock: all recommended care given Higher is better · 625 patients | 59% | 64% | 65% |
How Catawba Valley Medical Center 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Catawba Valley Medical CenterThis hospital | 2/5 | 74% | 3 h 48 min | 3 better 5 worse |
| Frye Regional Medical CenterSame city | 2/5 | 61% | 2 h 54 min | 1 better 2 worse |
| Watauga Medical CenterSame ZIP area · Boone | 3/5 | 77% | 3 h 12 min | 1 better 1 worse |
| Hugh Chatham Memorial HospitalSame ZIP area · Elkin | 3/5 | 68% | 2 h 48 min | 2 worse |
| Ashe Memorial HospitalSame ZIP area · Jefferson | 3/5 | 68% | 2 h 58 min | No different |
| Caldwell Memorial HospitalSame ZIP area · Lenoir | 3/5 | 58% | 3 h 25 min | 2 better |
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 Hickory.
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 2,089 cases | Too few cases | 4.6% | 3.9% |
| Heart attack 105 cases | Too few cases | 14.9% | 11.9% |
| Heart failure 194 cases | Too few cases | 17.3% | 11.1% |
| Pneumonia 343 cases | Too few cases | 23.4% | 15.2% |
| Stroke 193 cases | Too few cases | 11.1% | 11.9% |
| COPD 87 cases | Too few cases | 9.5% | 8.6% |
1 more measure 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 0.56 – 1.31 | 1 |
| Deaths after a serious but treatable surgical complication 47 cases | Worse | 227.02 per 1,000 likely 176.34 per 1,000 – 277.69 per 1,000 | 173.3 per 1,000 |
| Pressure ulcers (bed sores) 2,404 cases | No different | 0.25 per 1,000 likely 0 per 1,000 – 1.09 per 1,000 | 0.63 per 1,000 |
| Collapsed lung caused by a procedure 3,356 cases | No different | 0.18 per 1,000 likely 0 per 1,000 – 0.39 per 1,000 | 0.21 per 1,000 |
| Broken bones from falls in the hospital 3,313 cases | No different | 0.24 per 1,000 likely 0.03 per 1,000 – 0.44 per 1,000 | 0.27 per 1,000 |
| Bleeding or hematoma after surgery 831 cases | No different | 2.32 per 1,000 likely 0.8 per 1,000 – 3.85 per 1,000 | 2.34 per 1,000 |
| Kidney injury needing dialysis after surgery 355 cases | No different | 1.5 per 1,000 likely 0 per 1,000 – 3.15 per 1,000 | 1.67 per 1,000 |
| Breathing failure after surgery 309 cases | No different | 11.77 per 1,000 likely 3.64 per 1,000 – 19.9 per 1,000 | 9.42 per 1,000 |
| Blood clots in the lungs or legs after surgery 859 cases | No different | 3.7 per 1,000 likely 1.44 per 1,000 – 5.97 per 1,000 | 3.52 per 1,000 |
| Sepsis after surgery 324 cases | No different | 5.04 per 1,000 likely 1.12 per 1,000 – 8.96 per 1,000 | 5.27 per 1,000 |
| Surgical wound splitting open 147 cases | No different | 1.69 per 1,000 likely 0.19 per 1,000 – 3.19 per 1,000 | 1.77 per 1,000 |
| Accidental cut or tear during abdominal surgery 567 cases | No different | 1.17 per 1,000 likely 0.15 per 1,000 – 2.19 per 1,000 | 1.06 per 1,000 |
1 more measure 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 | 0.58 likely 0.1 – 1.9 | 1 |
| Urinary tract infections from catheters (CAUTI) | No different | 1.26 likely 0.55 – 2.5 | 1 |
| Surgical site infections after colon surgery | No different | 0.54 likely 0.03 – 2.66 | 1 |
| Surgical site infections after abdominal hysterectomy | No different | 0.8 likely 0.04 – 3.94 | 1 |
| MRSA bloodstream infections | No different | 0.35 likely 0.02 – 1.73 | 1 |
| C. diff intestinal infections | Better | 0.16 likely 0.04 – 0.42 | 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 169 cases | Too few cases | 13.4% | 14.4% |
| Readmitted after heart failure 295 cases | Too few cases | 18.7% | 21.3% |
| Readmitted after pneumonia 514 cases | Too few cases | 16.9% | 17.3% |
| Readmitted after COPD 179 cases | Too few cases | 19.9% | 20% |
| Days back in hospital after a heart attack 86 cases | Too few cases | -4.9 days per 100 | — |
| Days back in hospital after heart failure 198 cases | Too few cases | -47.8 days per 100 | — |
| Days back in hospital after pneumonia 349 cases | Too few cases | -4.5 days per 100 | — |
| Unplanned visits after an outpatient colonoscopy 677 cases | No different | 12.4 per 1,000 likely 9.5 per 1,000 – 16.4 per 1,000 | 13 per 1,000 |
| Hospital admissions during outpatient chemotherapy 55 cases | No different | 10 per 100 likely 7 per 100 – 14 per 100 | 10.7 per 100 |
| ER visits during outpatient chemotherapy 55 cases | No different | 5 per 100 likely 3.3 per 100 – 7.6 per 100 | 5.4 per 100 |
| Unplanned visits after outpatient surgery 535 cases | No different | 0.9 likely 0.7 – 1.2 | — |
3 more measures had too few cases here to report.
Clinicians registered at this address
147 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 | 30 |
| Emergency Medicine | 16 |
| Dietitian, Registered | 12 |
| Physical Therapist | 12 |
| Physician Assistant | 10 |
| Anesthesiology | 9 |
| Internal Medicine | 9 |
| Advanced Practice Midwife | 8 |
| Nurse Practitioner | 6 |
| Speech-Language Pathologist | 6 |
| Occupational Therapist | 4 |
| Pharmacist | 3 |
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 Catawba Valley Medical Center
Is Catawba Valley Medical Center a good hospital?
Catawba Valley Medical Center has a CMS overall rating of 2 out of 5 stars. Of the 25 death, complication, infection and readmission measures CMS could compare, it does better than the nation on 3 and worse on 5. These are hospital-wide results published by CMS; they do not rate individual doctors or departments.
Would patients recommend Catawba Valley Medical Center?
74% of patients who answered CMS's national survey would definitely recommend it, against a US average of 71%. The figure comes from 575 completed HCAHPS surveys.
How long is the wait in the Catawba Valley Medical Center emergency room?
Emergency patients spend a median of 3 h 48 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. 5% of emergency patients left before being seen (US 2%). These are medians over a year of visits, not a live wait time.