Fix the Record, Fuel the Results: How Better Documentation Transforms Healthcare Quality Rankings

The Question Every Healthcare Leader Is Asking:

“Why don’t our quality ratings reflect the great care we provide—and how can we fix it?”

The short answer: Most rating systems, including CMS Star Ratings, evaluate the documentation of care rather than the care itself. If your records don’t capture patient acuity, comorbidities, and risk factors accurately, your organization will be under-credited in rankings and reimbursement. The good news? With the right tools, you can align your documentation with your delivery and get the recognition—and revenue—you deserve

Why Your Quality Ratings Don’t Reflect the Care You Deliver

Many hospitals and health systems find themselves in a frustrating position: the care delivered is excellent, but the scores don’t show it. Ratings from CMS, Vizient, U.S. News & World Report, and Leapfrog often lag behind reality because they depend on claims data and provider documentation.

That disconnect creates pain on multiple levels:

• Lower Healthcare Quality Rankings than peers
• Missed reimbursement in value-based programs
• Reputational risk when patients and physicians compare hospitals

You’re doing the work—but your records aren’t giving you credit.

Documentation: The Hidden Growth Driver

Quality rankings and CMS Star Ratings depend on the accuracy of your documentation. If comorbidities, coding details, or clinical complexity aren’t fully reflected, your scores suffer.

Tendo Insights and Tendo Quality Documentation Improvement were designed to fix this gap, ensuring the care you provide is fully recognized in the data.

• Explore Tendo Insights
• Get your personalized CMS Star Rating scorecard

The Results You Can Expect

Hospitals using Tendo have seen:

• 20% increase in comorbidity capture across specialties.
• 70% more valid queries, improving accuracy and speed.
• Observed-to-Expected ratios at historic lows, driving better quality metrics.
• Forecasted increases across all US News-ranked specialties

Why This Matters Across the Organization

• CMOs & CQOs: Accurately showcase complexity and quality of care
• CFOs: Gain leverage in negotiations, reimbursement, and penalty mitigation
• CDI & Quality Teams: Pinpoint real opportunities with confidence
• Clinicians: Understand how documentation impacts both patient outcomes and system performance

As we’ve shared in our HealthTech Predictions, quality is becoming a collective responsibility—and accurate documentation is the foundation.

Take the Next Step

The quality of your documentation defines your Healthcare Quality Rankings, your CMS Star Ratings, and ultimately your reputation and revenue. Don’t let incomplete records hold your organization back.

Get your personalized CMS Star Rating scorecard

Because the care you deliver should work for you—not against you.