USCareCheck

CMS certification 440125

Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center

1901 W Clinch Ave, Knoxville, TN 37916

Acute Care Hospitals Emergency services Birthing-friendly

Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center has a CMS overall rating of 3 out of 5 stars. 68% 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 5 and worse on 2. Emergency patients spend a median of 3 h 54 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 3/5 CMS summary of quality measures
Would definitely recommend 68% US average 71%
Patient survey rating 3/5 1,219 completed surveys
Compared with the nation 2 worse 5 better of 27 measures CMS could compare

What patients said

Answers from patients who stayed here, collected by CMS in the national HCAHPS survey: 1,219 completed surveys, 22% response rate, Oct 2024 – Sep 2025.

Would definitely recommend the hospital
68%
TN 70% · US 71% · 4 of 5 stars
Rated the hospital 9 or 10 out of 10
67%
TN 71% · US 72% · 3 of 5 stars
Nurses always communicated well
78%
TN 80% · US 80% · 3 of 5 stars
Doctors always communicated well
77%
TN 81% · US 80% · 3 of 5 stars
Staff always explained new medicines
58%
TN 62% · US 62% · 2 of 5 stars
Given information about recovering at home
85%
TN 86% · US 86% · 3 of 5 stars
Room was always clean
71%
TN 72% · US 74% · 3 of 5 stars
Always quiet at night
57%
TN 63% · US 60% · 3 of 5 stars

This hospital Tennessee 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 TN US
Median time in the emergency department before leaving Lower is better · 444 visits sampled · US median for EDs of the same volume: 3 h 22 min 3 h 54 min 2 h 42 min 2 h 42 min
Median time for psychiatric and mental health patients Lower is better · 38 visits sampled 8 h 22 min 5 h 8 min 4 h 17 min
Left before being seen Lower is better · 51,323 patients 4% 3% 2%
Stroke symptoms: brain scan read within 45 minutes Higher is better · 11 patients 91% 69% 69%
Severe sepsis and septic shock: all recommended care given Higher is better · 387 patients 61% 59% 65%

How Fort Sanders Regional 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
Fort Sanders Regional Medical CenterThis hospital3/568%3 h 54 min5 better 2 worse
University Health System, INCSame city4/577%4 h 9 min7 better 3 worse
Parkwest Medical CenterSame city3/573%4 h 19 min2 better 1 worse
Physicians Regional Medical CenterSame county · Powell3/566%3 h 16 min3 better 3 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 Knoxville.

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 3,722 cases Too few cases 4.2% 3.9%
Heart attack 119 cases Too few cases 13.1% 11.9%
Heart failure 214 cases Too few cases 12.5% 11.1%
Pneumonia 244 cases Too few cases 16.4% 15.2%
Stroke 764 cases Too few cases 12.5% 11.9%
COPD 144 cases Too few cases 11.4% 8.6%
Heart bypass surgery (CABG) 53 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.

12 no different
Measure CMS comparison This hospital National
Serious complications, combined measure No different 0.76 likely 0.46 – 1.06 1
After hip or knee replacement 57 cases Too few cases 3.7% 4.1%
Deaths after a serious but treatable surgical complication 63 cases No different 188.12 per 1,000 likely 137.1 per 1,000 – 239.14 per 1,000 173.3 per 1,000
Pressure ulcers (bed sores) 4,617 cases No different 0.51 per 1,000 likely 0 per 1,000 – 1.17 per 1,000 0.63 per 1,000
Collapsed lung caused by a procedure 5,522 cases No different 0.21 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 5,762 cases No different 0.29 per 1,000 likely 0.1 per 1,000 – 0.49 per 1,000 0.27 per 1,000
Bleeding or hematoma after surgery 1,324 cases No different 1.63 per 1,000 likely 0.18 per 1,000 – 3.08 per 1,000 2.34 per 1,000
Kidney injury needing dialysis after surgery 711 cases No different 1.32 per 1,000 likely 0 per 1,000 – 2.85 per 1,000 1.67 per 1,000
Breathing failure after surgery 666 cases No different 6.82 per 1,000 likely 0.59 per 1,000 – 13.04 per 1,000 9.42 per 1,000
Blood clots in the lungs or legs after surgery 1,392 cases No different 2.54 per 1,000 likely 0.56 per 1,000 – 4.51 per 1,000 3.52 per 1,000
Sepsis after surgery 598 cases No different 3.45 per 1,000 likely 0.21 per 1,000 – 6.68 per 1,000 5.27 per 1,000
Surgical wound splitting open 428 cases No different 1.87 per 1,000 likely 0.42 per 1,000 – 3.31 per 1,000 1.77 per 1,000
Accidental cut or tear during abdominal surgery 1,328 cases No different 0.7 per 1,000 likely 0 per 1,000 – 1.59 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.

3 better than the nation 3 no different
Measure CMS comparison This hospital National
Bloodstream infections from central lines (CLABSI) Better 0.16 likely 0.01 – 0.77 1
Urinary tract infections from catheters (CAUTI) No different 0.46 likely 0.17 – 1.02 1
Surgical site infections after colon surgery Better 0.28 likely 0.07 – 0.76 1
Surgical site infections after abdominal hysterectomy No different 1.43 likely 0.24 – 4.72 1
MRSA bloodstream infections No different 0.98 likely 0.43 – 1.94 1
C. diff intestinal infections Better 0.08 likely 0.03 – 0.17 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.

4 no different
Measure CMS comparison This hospital National
Readmitted after a heart attack 263 cases Too few cases 14.9% 14.4%
Readmitted after heart failure 557 cases Too few cases 22.4% 21.3%
Readmitted after pneumonia 597 cases Too few cases 18.1% 17.3%
Readmitted after COPD 449 cases Too few cases 21% 20%
Readmitted after heart bypass surgery 68 cases Too few cases 11.1% 11%
Readmitted after hip or knee replacement 56 cases Too few cases 4.7% 5.8%
Days back in hospital after a heart attack 116 cases Too few cases 10.5 days per 100 —
Days back in hospital after heart failure 250 cases Too few cases 36.3 days per 100 —
Days back in hospital after pneumonia 249 cases Too few cases 28.4 days per 100 —
Unplanned visits after an outpatient colonoscopy 1,386 cases No different 12.7 per 1,000 likely 9.9 per 1,000 – 16.4 per 1,000 13 per 1,000
Hospital admissions during outpatient chemotherapy 125 cases No different 12.3 per 100 likely 9.2 per 100 – 16 per 100 10.7 per 100
ER visits during outpatient chemotherapy 125 cases No different 4.6 per 100 likely 3.1 per 100 – 6.8 per 100 5.4 per 100
Unplanned visits after outpatient surgery 516 cases No different 0.9 likely 0.7 – 1.1 —

1 more measure had too few cases here to report.

Clinicians registered at this address

82 clinicians give this hospital's street address as their practice location in NPPES, the federal provider registry, plus 3 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
Nurse Anesthetist, Certified Registered 19
Emergency Medicine 12
Pharmacist 9
Physical Therapy Assistant 4
Anesthesiology 3
Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation 3
Physician Assistant 3
Specialist 3
Adult Health 2
Critical Care Medicine 2
Dietitian, Registered 2
Internal Medicine 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 Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center

Is Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center a good hospital?

Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center 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 5 and worse on 2. These are hospital-wide results published by CMS; they do not rate individual doctors or departments.

Would patients recommend Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center?

68% of patients who answered CMS's national survey would definitely recommend it, against a US average of 71%. The figure comes from 1,219 completed HCAHPS surveys.

How long is the wait in the Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center emergency room?

Emergency patients spend a median of 3 h 54 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. 4% of emergency patients left before being seen (US 2%). These are medians over a year of visits, not a live wait time.