Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades rate Middle Georgia hospitals on patient safety practices
The latest Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades have been issued for Middle Georgia hospitals.
MACON- Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – The latest Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades have been issued for Middle Georgia hospitals.
The complete list of graded hospitals in middle Georgia are as follows:
- Piedmont Macon Medical Center, Macon – A
- Piedmont Macon North, Macon – A
- Fairview Park Hospital, Dublin – A
- Perry Hospital, Perry – B
- Atrium Health Navicent Baldwin, Milledgeville – C
- Atrium Health Navicent, Medical Center, Macon – C
- Houston Medical Center, Warner Robins – C
The Leapfrog Group is a national consumer advocacy nonprofit that reports on hospital safety ratings every six months. The ratings are based on data provided by hospitals regarding what measures they take to ensure the safety of their patients.
This year, Piedmont Macon Medical Center received its 10th consecutive A grade. Chief Medical Officer at Piedmont Macon Medical Center and Piedmont Macon North Hospitals, Dr. Dr. Gary Bernstein, explained how both hospitals maintain a safe environment for patients.
“We use both electronic medical records as well as our daily processes to monitor patients to prevent them from falling inadvertently here in the hospital, getting them up and around so they don’t get blood clots and pneumonias and other things that can happen to patients,” Dr. Bernstein said.
This is also Piedmont Macon North’s sixth consecutive A grade. Dr. Bernstein says both hospitals are committed to maintaining their A grades every day.
The Leapfrog group measures hospital safety by factors such as bacterial infections, problems with surgery, safety problems, practices to prevent errors and qualified hospital staff.
According to Dr. Bernstein, the Covid-19 Pandemic posed a higher risk to patient safety.
“Piedmont has had, and particularly these two hospitals, had a long history of emphasis on the quality of patient care,” he said.”And yes, it’s even more challenging to maintain those safety grades during Covid, but that’s just dedication to the care of our patients.”
Atrium Health Navicent, Medical Center in Macon and Atrium Health Navicent Baldwin in Milledgeville were also graded on their safety. Both hospitals received a grade of C, indicating average to worse than average performance.
We reached out to Atrium Health Navicent for a response to the grade and received the following statement:
For us, we believe the true test of quality is patient outcomes. Atrium Health is the undisputed leader in our region in clinical expertise, safety and innovation. Various organizations create their own, subjective set of criteria to make lists of which health systems are “best,” often selling the rights to hospitals to make such claims using that given judging organization’s logo.
Atrium Health focuses on continuous performance improvement always – using an integrated, evidence-based approach. We recognize the importance of transparency in sharing hospital safety and quality data and do so willingly. Although outside organizations use data that can be up to two years old, it’s important to note that we use near-immediate internal measures and tools to strive for operational improvements we can make in real-time. We also use direct feedback from our teammates and patients, including engagement and listening through our Patient and Family Advisory Councils, to improve on any patient safety and care in the moment, rather than waiting on yearly reports from outside agencies. While external rankings certainly have a place in the industry, we believe our immediate responses to continuous improvement are a much better indicator.
Atrium Health is continually recognized for its quality and safety by national organizations including the American Hospital Association, Planetree and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) – and we have been awarded multiple contracts by CMS through its Partnership for Patients initiative. We’ve also been honored regularly by U.S. News & World Report, Newsweek and Forbes.
