MetroHealth awarded an "A" for patient safety by hospital safety - 19 Action News|Cleveland, OH|News, Weather, Sports

MetroHealth Medical Center was honored with an "A" Hospital Safety ScoreSM by The Leapfrog Group, an independent national nonprofit run by employers and other large purchasers of health benefits. This top score affirms the efforts by MetroHealth to ensure a safe environment for all of its patients while also providing high-quality care.

"We are extremely proud to be given such a high mark for patient safety. MetroHealth is continuously looking for ways to improve the patient experience, whether it's through outcomes, safety or customer service," said Alfred Connors, MD, Chief Medical Officer of The MetroHealth System. "The latest grade by Hospital Safety Score and The Leapfrog Group is a testament to our hard work and dedication to all of our patients."

The Hospital Safety ScoreSM was calculated under the guidance of The Leapfrog Group's Blue Ribbon Expert Panel using publicly available data on patient injuries, medical and medication errors and infections. U.S. hospitals were assigned an A, B, C, D, or F for their safety.

MetroHealth received some of its highest marks in surgical care. For example, it was determined that MetroHealth gave surgery patients the appropriate treatment to prevent blood clots at the right time 99% of the time.   

"It's The Leapfrog Group's goal to give patients the information they need and deserve before even entering a hospital," said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. "We congratulate the hospitals that earned an 'A' and we look forward to the day when all hospitals in the U.S. will earn the highest scores for putting patient safety first."

To see MetroHealth's scores as they compare nationally and locally, visit www.hospitalsafetyscore.org <http://www.hospitalsafetyscore.org>, the Hospital Safety ScoreSM website, which also provides information on how the public can protect themselves and loved ones during a hospital stay.

Calculated under the guidance of The Leapfrog Group's nine-member Blue Ribbon Expert Panel, the Hospital Safety Score uses 26 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to produce a single score representing a hospital's overall capacity to keep patients safe from infections, injuries, and medical and medication errors. The panel includes: John Birkmeyer (University of Michigan), Ashish Jha (Harvard University), Lucian Leape (Harvard University), Arnold Millstein (Stanford University), Peter Pronovost (Johns Hopkins University), Patrick Romano (University of California, Davis), Sara Singer (Harvard University), Tim Vogus (Vanderbilt University), and Robert Wachter (University of California, San Francisco).

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