Sixty-five hospitals recognized for best performance in patient safety and quality for 2010 – an award that hinges heavily on IT use – were announced Wednesday by watchdog organization The Leapfrog Group.
Officials made the announcement at Leapfrog's 10th anniversary meeting, held in Washington. The list, chosen from a field of almost 1,200, includes 53 university and other teaching hospitals, five rural hospitals, and seven children's hospitals.
The selection is based on the results of the Leapfrog Group's national survey that measures hospitals' performance in four crucial areas of patient safety and quality: the use of computer physician order entry (CPOE) to prevent medication errors; standards for doing high-risk procedures such as heart surgery; protocols and policies to reduce medical errors and other safe practices recommended by the National Quality Forum; and adequate nurse and physician staffing.
In addition, hospitals are measured on their progress in preventing infections and other hospital-acquired conditions and adopting policies on the handling of serious medical errors.
"This is the largest number of hospitals to achieve the top hospital designation since the award's inception in 2006," noted Leapfrog CEO Leah Binder.
The 1,200 hospitals that publicly report their performance via the Leapfrog Survey do so voluntarily. "In a way, that makes all of them top hospitals," said Binder. "It represents an enormous commitment by the institution to not only measure what they do against tough standards, but also to work for change and be transparent about it. And it's a signal to employers and other healthcare purchasers in their community that these hospitals care."
Leapfrog Board Chair David Knowlton, president of the New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute, pointed out that qualifying for the top hospital rank grows more difficult each year as Leapfrog's standards evolve and new standards are added. "Leapfrog's members, as purchasers of care, and our partners and supporters believe that the challenges for American healthcare go far beyond just keeping costs down. Making certain that patients get the right care at the right time – value – is an equal part of the equation."
The Leapfrog Group is a coalition of public and private purchasers of employee health coverage founded a decade ago to work for improvements in healthcare safety, quality and affordability. Initially organized by the Business Roundtable, it is now an independent organization working with a broad range of partners, including hospitals and insurers.
The Leapfrog Hospital Survey is the only voluntary effort of its kind. Leapfrog officials say they plan to expand their efforts in the months ahead to work with consumer groups and other national organizations to get the hospital survey results in front of more individuals making decisions about where to receive care.
The list top hospitals is on the next page.
2010 Leapfrog Top Hospitals
1. Mayo Clinic Hospital - Phoenix (AZ)
2. California Pacific Medical Center - Davies Campus (CA)
3. Kaiser Permanente Riverside Medical Center (CA)
4. Kaiser Permanente Antioch Medical Center (CA)
5. Kaiser Permanente Fontana Medical Center (CA)
6. Kaiser Permanente Harbor City Medical Center (CA)
7. Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Medical Center (CA)
8. Kaiser Permanente Oakland Medical Center (CA)
9. Kaiser Permanente Panorama City Medical Center (CA)
10. Kaiser Permanente Richmond Medical Center (CA)
11. Kaiser Permanente Roseville Medical Center (CA)
12. Kaiser Permanente San Diego Medical Center (CA)
13. Kaiser Permanente San Francisco Medical Center (CA)
14. Kaiser Permanente San Jose Medical Center (CA)
15. Kaiser Permanente San Rafael Medical Center (CA)
16. Kaiser Permanente Santa Clara Medical Center (CA)
17. Kaiser Permanente South San Francisco Medical Center (CA)
18. Kaiser Permanente Walnut Creek Medical Center (CA)
19. Mills-Peninsula Health Services (CA)
20. Stanford Hospital and Clinics (CA)
21. University of California Davis Medical Center (CA)
22. Cleveland Clinic Florida (FL)
23. Homestead Hospital Inc (FL)
24. Mayo Clinic Hospital - Jacksonville (FL)
25. NorthShore University HealthSystem – Evanston Hospital (IL)
26. NorthShore University HealthSystem – Glenbrook Hospital (IL)
27. NorthShore University HealthSystem – Highland Park Hospital (IL)
28. NorthShore University HealthSystem – Skokie Hospital (IL)
29. Rush University Medical Center (IL)
30. Baystate Medical Center (MA)
31. Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (MA)
32. Brigham and Women's Hospital (MA)
33. Caritas Good Samaritan Medical Center (MA)
34. Norwood Hospital (MA)
35. The University of Maryland Medical Center (MD)
36. Detroit Receiving Hospital & University Health Center (MI)
37. DMC Harper University Hospital – Hutzel Women's Hospital (MI)
38. Huron Valley-Sinai Hospital (MI)
39. University of Michigan Health System (MI)
40. Mayo Clinic Rochester – Saint Marys (MN)
41. Hackensack University Medical (NJ)
42. University Medical Center At Princeton (NJ)
43. Roswell Park Cancer Institute (NY)
44. The Christ Hospital (OH)
45. The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OH)
46. Lehigh Valley Hospital (PA)
47. Bon Secours St. Francis Health System – Downtown (SC)
48. Vanderbilt University Hospital (TN)
49. Sentara Leigh Hospital (VA)
50. Sentara Careplex Hospital (VA)
51. Virginia Mason Medical Center (WA)
52. Swedish Medical Center/Cherry Hill (WA)
53. Swedish Medical Center/First Hill (WA)
2010 Leapfrog Top Rural Hospitals
54. St. Anthony Summit Medical Center (CO)
55. Grinnell Regional Medical Center (IA)
56. Inland Hospital (ME)
57. Sebasticook Valley Hospital (ME)
58. Central Carolina Hospital (NC)
2010 Leapfrog Top Children's Hospitals
59. Children's Hospital Los Angeles (CA)
60. Children's National Medical Center (DC)
61. Children's Hospital Boston (MA)
62. Children's Hospitals And Clinics Of Minnesota – Saint Paul (MN)
63. Children's Hospitals And Clinics Of Minnesota – Minneapolis (MN)
64. Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC (PA)
65. Cook Children's Medical Center (TX)
