(MONEY Magazine) – Before checking into a hospital, wouldn't you like to know its track record? Consider this: Since September, three Websites have started letting consumers easily gather information on their hospital.

For example, the consulting firm Healthcare Report Cards uses Medicare mortality and surgical-complication data to award hospitals one- to five-star ratings in five fields: cardiac, orthopedic and vascular surgery, neurology and neurosurgery, and pulmonary and respiratory medicine. (The company plans to add obstetrics and oncology this year.) The ratings, along with details on each hospital, are available free at www.healthcarereportcards.com.

America's Health Network's site (www.ahn.com) names top hospitals in 18 major cities. These designations--compiled in conjunction with the healthcare-research firm HCIA--are based on quality-of-care measures such as death rates and nurse-to-patient ratios. A detailed report for each city costs $29.95.

For $35, you can order a rating and full profile of your hospital, including information on recent malpractice suits, specialties, services offered and ownership, from PatientWatch, a private patient-advocacy firm (www.patientwatch.com).

But remember: While this information is a useful starting point, even the pros agree that measuring the quality of health care is an inexact science. At a minimum, you may be able to see how often your hospital performs the type of procedure you're getting. "Look at these ratings as tools to help you ask tough questions," suggests Rick Wade, spokesman for the American Hospital Association. So, for example, if your hospital gets a low rating on the surgery you're facing, talk to your doctor about how often he or she has performed the procedure there and with what results.

--NATASHA RAFI