If you need knee or back surgery, be aware of a just-released study comparing patient outcomes at a number of medical groups across Minnesota — the first survey of its kind in the nation. Jim Chase with Minnesota Community Measurement says with knee surgery, most patients saw “good improvement” pretty much regardless of provider — but that’s not the case for spine surgery:

Not all medical groups in Minnesota submitted data, but you can find information on those that did at MNhealthscores.org.