New Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades, which assign A, B, C, D and F letter grades to hospitals nationwide and provide the most complete picture of patient safety in the U.S., were announced for spring 2017 by The Leapfrog Group, a national patient safety watchdog. Saint Mary’s Regional Medical Center was the only hospital in the state of Nevada to receive an “A” grade designation out of the 19 hospitals reviewed.
“Quality and safety rankings continue to be a critical driver to our patient outcomes,” said Helen Lidholm, CEO of Saint Mary’s Health Network. “We are committed to patient satisfaction and health care excellence. We want to ensure patients understand what these rankings mean and how they can utilize this information to choose a health care provider.”
National safety regulations for hospitals consider several factors including handwashing or use of sanitizer gel before and after every patient interaction, staff training to improve and recognize safety, elimination of infections in the blood during an ICU stay, and the close monitoring of patients who are at risk of falling. Additionally, Leapfrog data shows that a patient’s risk of death at a “C” hospital is 35.2 percent higher and 49.8 percent higher at a “D” or “F” hospital, as compared to a hospital that ranks at an “A”. Additionally, 33,459 lives could be saves annually if hospitals with grades, “B,” “C,” “D,” and “F” improved their patient safety.
Developed under the guidance of an Expert Panel, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses 30 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign A, B, C, D and F grades to more than 2,600 U.S. hospitals twice per year. It is calculated by top patient safety experts, peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public.
To see Saint Mary’s full grade, and to access consumer-friendly patient tips for staying safe in the hospital, visit www.hospitalsafetygrade.org or follow The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade on Twitter or Facebook. Consumers can also download the free Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade mobile app for Apple and Android devices.
To learn more about Saint Mary’s hospital safety measures and why this ranking is valuable when choosing a hospital.
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About Saint Mary’s Health Network: As a long-standing community partner with a 114-year history, Saint Mary’s Health Network offers Northern Nevada inpatient, outpatient, ancillary, and wellness services. Nationally recognized and accredited by the Joint Commission, as well as named one of the Top 100 Hospitals by Fortune/Merative and America’s Best 250 hospitals by Healthgrades, Saint Mary’s Regional Medical Center is a 352-bed acute care hospital offering a robust line of inpatient, outpatient and ancillary services including a top-rated Center for Cancer, surgical and orthopedic services, and an award-winning Cardiology program and more. The health system, a member of Prime Healthcare, also operates a fully-integrated Medical Group, multiple urgent care clinics, freestanding imaging, lab, and primary care clinics. For more information, visit www.SaintMarysReno.com.
About The Leapfrog Group
Founded in 2000 by large employers and other purchasers, The Leapfrog Group is a national nonprofit organization driving a movement for giant leaps forward in the quality and safety of American health care. The flagship Leapfrog Hospital Survey collects and transparently reports hospital performance, empowering purchasers to find the highest-value care and giving consumers the lifesaving information they need to make informed decisions. The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, Leapfrog’s other main initiative, assigns letter grades to hospitals based on their record of patient safety, helping consumers protect themselves and their families from errors, injuries, accidents, and infections.