Regardless of the type of studies we perform for our clients, we exclusively use California data in our benchmarking studies. Why? Three compelling reasons.

First, we have reviewed all available data sets at both the state and national level; we have found that California's data sets are the most detailed and reliable. Utilizing only California data over the past seven years has enabled us to perfect our exclusive purification and customization processes of these data sets, thus making the benchmarking data even more reliable.

Second, California has more comparator institutions than any other state, with 525 nonfederal hospitals, 3.6 million yearly hospital inpatient discharges, 1170 freestanding clinics, 1270 long-term care facilities, and 1050 private home health organizations. Having more comparators in a client's peer group enhances the statistical significance—and, therefore, the reliability—of Garrick Hyde Consulting benchmarking analyses.

Third, and most important, California leads the country in its managed-care evolution towards managed competition. The graph below illustrates the managed-care position of California metropolitan areas compared with other cities. Benchmarking our non-California clients against California institutions will provide these clients with strategic and operational insights about California dynamics, placing them on the cutting edge as their own local markets evolve.