- Written By:Alex Colley
The Leapfrog Group, a Washington D.C-based organization aiming to improve health care quality and safety for consumers and purchasers, today released the new Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades. St. Mary’s Medical Center was one of 750 awarded an ‘A’ for its efforts in protecting patients from harm and meeting the highest safety standards in the U.S. The Safety Grade assigns an A, B, C, D or F grade to hospitals across the country based on their performance in preventing medical errors, infections and other harms among patients in their care.
“St. Mary’s is honored to, again, receive an “A” grade from The Leapfrog Group. The Leapfrog Hospital Survey is a rigorous initiative that is raising the bar for safer healthcare and is a testament to our entire team’s commitment to patient quality and safety,” said Deb Ohnoutka, CEO of St. Mary’s Medical Center.
“This is the only national rating of how well hospitals protect patients from preventable harm and death, such as medical errors, infections, and injuries,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “Receiving an ‘A’ Safety Grade means a hospital is among the best in the country for preventing these terrible problems and putting their patients first, 24 hours a day.”
Developed under the guidance of an Expert Panel, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses 27 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign grades to approximately 2,500 U.S. hospitals twice per year. It is peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public.
To see St. Mary’s full grade details, and to access patient tips for staying safe in the hospital, visit www.hospitalsafetygrade.org and follow the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade on Twitter and Facebook.
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.
About St. Mary’s Medical Center
St. Mary’s Medical Center is a faith-based, 146-bed hospital located in Blue Springs, Missouri, providing a wide range of acute care and outpatient services from a 24-hour Emergency Department to state-of-the-art imaging and cardiovascular care. Key services include the St. Mary’s Heart Center, Stroke Center, Breast Center, Wound Center, Joint and Spine Institute and Surgical Institutes and Inpatient Rehabilitation Center. It is a member of Prime Healthcare, an award-winning national hospital system with 44 acute-care hospitals providing nearly 43,500 jobs in 14 states. For more information, call 816-228-5900 or visit stmaryskc.com.
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