200 Jefferson, SE
Grand Rapids, MI 49503
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 3, 2008 |
Contact: Micki Benz Vice President Ph: 616.685.1890 Pager : 616.397.6726 |
Saint Mary's Health Care Named One of Nation's Top Hospitals
by the Leapfrog Group for Performance in Safety Measures
Electronic Medical Records, Intensive Care Unit cited as factors in award
The Leapfrog Group named Saint Mary's Health Care and 25 other acute-care hospitals and seven pediatric facilities to its third annual “Top Hospitals” list. Saint Mary's Health Care is one of only seven Michigan hospitals and the sole West Michigan recipient of this award. The number of qualifying hospitals has narrowed since the group introduced additional requirements for the 2008 rankings. To qualify for inclusion on the 2008 list--which is based on 1,220 responses to the Leapfrog Hospital Survey--hospitals were required to demonstrate that they had met Leapfrog standards across four critical areas.
Specifically, “Top Hospitals” fully achieved Leapfrog standards or demonstrated substantial progress on 13 of 27 nationally recognized safe practices; met the group's performance threshold for treatment of at least one complex, high-risk procedure performed at their facility; fulfilled requirements for ICU staffing; and achieved computerized physician order entry (CPOE) adoption. However, the 2008 list also included several updated requirements. Hospitals, for instance, were required to have not only implemented CPOE systems but also tested them using Leapfrog's CPOE Evaluation Tool, which measures how well systems alert users about potential prescribing errors; according to Leapfrog, this measure alone excluded a number of hospitals who had previously met the group's CPOE requirement in 2007. Additionally, Leapfrog added neuro ICUs to the ICU Physician Staffing standard for 2008, making it more difficult for facilities to achieve that so-called “leap.”
Saint Mary's Vice President John Collins, MD, observed that, “Saint Mary's Health Care is grateful to the Leapfrog Group for helping lead the way to make patient safety 'everyone's job' when caring for hospitalized individuals. Our recognition as one of the top hospitals in the country reinforces our commitment at Saint Mary's to 'provide the best care and service to every person, at every encounter.' We strongly believe that the culture of safety we are developing at Saint Mary's has improved the quality of care we provide patients through a committed team approach.”
Commenting on the 2008 list, Leapfrog's CEO notes that, “last year's Top Hospitals are still excellent performers, but this year's class has taken additional steps to earn the right to be recognized.” Thirty-three acute-care hospitals and eight pediatric facilities were named to the second annual Top Hospitals list in 2007, and the 2006 list included 50 hospitals and nine pediatric hospitals. To access the 2008 Top Hospitals list, please visit the Leapfrog Group website (Leapfrog Group release , 9/24; Leapfrog Group methodology , 9/24; Enrado, HealthCare IT News ,)
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Saint Mary's Health Care is an integrated network of health care excellence offering a unique combination of capabilities to deliver a health care experience that is more complete and personally satisfying. Our commitment to offer the latest technology and most highly skilled physicians in a holistic, patient-centered environment has made us a progressive leader in cancer care, neuroscience, orthopedics, diabetes and endocrine care, kidney transplants, and integrative health care.
The network encompasses more than 2,400 employees, a 336-bed, JCAHO-accredited teaching hospital, The Lacks Cancer Center, The Wege Institute for Health and Learning, the Center for Diabetes and Endocrinology, the Hauenstein Neuroscience Program, three fitness centers, five community outreach centers and affiliations with home health care, rehabilitation services, and the area's premier primary care network, Advantage Health Physician Network. Saint Mary's has several times been awarded the Governor's Award of Excellence and named one of West Michigan's 101 Best and Brightest Companies to Work for. Saint Mary's is a member of Trinity Health, the country's fourth-largest Catholic health care system.