Leapfrog update: Hospitals improve on safe practices but not on outcomes
The fall 2014 update to The Leapfrog Group’s Hospital Safety Score shows that hospitals have made significant improvements when it comes to implementing processes of care and safe practices but their performance on outcomes lags behind.
Since April, there has been improvement on all 15 of Leapfrog’s process measures—such as hand hygiene and physician staffing in intensive care units. However, the data also points to a lack of progress on outcomes, with hospitals even declining on certain measures, such as preventing surgical site infections in patients who have undergone major colon surgery.
“While the data tells us that hospitals are improving their safe practices, it’s concerning to see them moving backwards on any measure. Patients enter a hospital trusting they’re in a safe place, but with 41 percent of hospitals receiving a ‘C,’ ‘D’ or ‘F’ grade, it’s clear that some hospitals are safer than others,” said Leah Binder, Leapfrog president and CEO, in a statement.
Binder notes that with up to 400,000 lives lost annually and one in 25 patients acquiring an infection in the hospital, it’s crucial for consumers to be proactive about their healthcare. “Consumers have largely taken the time to educate themselves about insurance plans and pricing. Now, we need patients to take the next step, putting safety first, for themselves and their families, and that means seeking out the safest hospitals in their area. The Hospital Safety Score arms consumers with that information."
Of the Hospital Safety Score’s 13 outcome measures, the only significant improvement since spring 2014 was seen in preventing central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI) in intensive care units.
Maine again claimed the No. 1 spot for the state with the highest percentage of “A” hospitals, with 67 percent earning the top grade. The update also reveals that 72 hospitals (or less than 3 percent) changed by two or more grades, showing either a significant improvement or significant decline.
Editor Beth earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism and master’s in health communication. She has worked in hospital, academic and publishing settings over the past 20 years. Beth joined TriMed in 2005, as editor of CMIO and Clinical Innovation + Technology. When not covering all things related to health IT, she spends time with her husband and three children.