Published On: Mon, May 9th, 2016

Local Hospitals Receive Safety Ratings in National Survey

CRA News Service

West Boca Medical Center received top grade in prevention of avoidable errors, accidents, bed sores and infections, according to a study released this week.

The hospital received an “A” grade in the Hospital Safety Scores spring ratings published by the national nonprofit watchdog the Leapfrog Group.

“We are pleased to achieve the highest rating for the ninth consecutive time since the inception of this designation four years ago,” said Mitch Feldman, CEO of West Boca Medical Center, said in a news release. “It demonstrates that our commitment to patient safety is continually making a difference.”

The Washington-based Leapfrog Group evaluated more than 2,500 hospitals based on data the hospitals file with the federal government as part of its treatment of Medicare patients. Leapfrog also asked hospitals to complete a questionnaire focused on information technology and employee education. 

Boca Raton Regional Hospital slipped from a “B” last fall to a “C,” according to the Leapfrog’s report. The hospital also earned “A” ratings in the spring of 2015 and the fall of 2014, according to Leapfrog.

Messages left seeking comments from hospital officials were not returned by press time.

Delray Medical Center, the other Tenet hospital, dropped to a “B” after six consecutive “As”.

A separate study commissioned by Leapfrog estimated 33,000 lives could be saved every year if all hospitals in the country “performed as safely” as A hospitals.

“It is time for every hospital in America to put patient safety at the top of their priority list,” Leah Binder, Leapfrog’s president and CEO, said in a statement. “Tens of thousands of lives are at stake.”

Hospitals can save lives through their commitment to patient safety, she said.

“Those are the lives of your neighbors, your friends, and your family, protected at hospitals that don’t give up on the quest to be safe,” Binder added. “Ultimately, we want all hospitals to be A-level, because our communities deserve no less.”

The Leapfrog Group was formed in the 1990s among employers such as General Motors, FedEx, UPS and Toyota that were concerned that many of their workers were getting hurt in hospitals that were supposed to restore them to health. About 180,000 Americans die each year from preventable hospital errors such as infections. The Hospital Safety Score was compiled under the guidance of the nation’s leading experts on patient safety and is designed to give the public information they can use to protect themselves and their families. To see Tenet Florida’s scores as they compare nationally and locally, visit the Hospital Safety Score website at www.hospitalsafetyscore.org.

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