The Leapfrog Group recognizes outstanding UCI Health patient safety record
Medical center receives an “A” in spring 2015 Hospital Safety Score
April 29, 2015
UCI Health was honored with an “A” grade in the Spring 2015 Hospital Safety Score, which rates how well hospitals protect patients from errors, injuries and infections. The Hospital Safety Score is compiled under the guidance of the nation’s leading experts on patient safety and is administered by The Leapfrog Group, an independent industry watchdog.
“We are proud that The Leapfrog Group has recognized our commitment to providing healthcare at the highest levels of quality and patient safety,” said Terry A. Belmont, CEO of UC Irvine Medical Center.
UCI Health has received the top Leapfrog Group grade for two consecutive reporting periods
“As this score shows, UCI Health is already a very safe place to receive care,” said Dr. Douglas Merrill, chief medical officer, UC Irvine Medical Center. “However, every member of our team, from hospital leadership to support staff and those who directly treat patients, constantly seek ways to improve both the quality and safety of our patients’ care through initiatives across the medical center, our many outpatient practices and in the school of medicine.”
The Leapfrog score is the first and only hospital safety rating to be peer-reviewed in the Journal of Patient Safety. It is free to the public and designed to give consumers information they can use to protect themselves and their families when facing a hospital stay.
"At a time when more than 1,000 people die every day from preventable accidents in hospitals, Leapfrog believes that patient safety should be job number 1 in every hospital, 24-7. To reinforce that goal of consistent vigilance, we've made it easier for patients and others to evaluate a hospital's previous safety record on the Hospital Safety Score website," said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group.
Leapfrog’s scores consider how often a hospital gives patients recommended treatment for a given medical condition or procedure; assesses the environment in which patients receive care, such as whether a hospital uses a computerized physician order entry system to prevent medication errors; and what happens to a patient while receiving care, such as whether care teams left foreign objects in patients while undergoing surgery.
Developed under the guidance of Leapfrog’s Blue Ribbon Expert Panel, the Hospital Safety Score uses 28 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to produce a single “A,” “B,” “C,” “D,” or “F” score representing a hospital’s overall capacity to keep patients safe from preventable harm. More than 2,500 U.S. general hospitals were assigned scores in fall 2014, with about 31-percent receiving an “A” grade. The Hospital Safety Score is fully transparent, with a full analysis of the data and methodology used in determining grades available online.
The public can compare scores locally and nationally at the newly updated Hospital Safety Score website at www.hospitalsafetyscore.org. Consumers can also download the Hospital Safety Score mobile app.
About The Leapfrog Group: The Hospital Safety Score (www.hospitalsafetyscore.org) is an initiative of The Leapfrog Group (www.leapfroggroup.org), a national nonprofit organization using the collective leverage of large purchasers of health care to initiate breakthrough improvements in the safety, quality and affordability of health care for Americans. The flagship Leapfrog Hospital Survey allows purchasers to structure their contracts and purchasing to reward the highest performing hospitals. The Leapfrog Group was founded in November 2000 with support from the Business Roundtable and national funders and is now independently operated with support from its purchaser and other members.
UCI Health comprises the clinical, medical education and research enterprises of the University of California, Irvine. Patients can access UCI Health at physician offices throughout Orange County and at its main campus, UC Irvine Medical Center in Orange, Calif., a 411-bed acute care hospital that provides tertiary and quaternary care, ambulatory and specialty medical clinics, behavioral health and rehabilitation. U.S. News & World Report has listed it among America’s Best Hospitals for 13 consecutive years. UC Irvine Medical Center features Orange County’s only National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center, high-risk perinatal/neonatal program, Level I trauma center and Level II pediatric trauma center, and is the primary teaching hospital for UC Irvine School of Medicine. UCI Health serves a region of more than 3 million people in Orange County, western Riverside County and southeast Los Angeles County. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
About the University of California, Irvine: Founded in 1965, UCI is the youngest member of the prestigious Association of American Universities. The campus has produced three Nobel laureates and is known for its academic achievement, premier research, innovation and anteater mascot. Led by Chancellor Howard Gillman, UCI has more than 28,000 students and offers 192 degree programs. Located in one of the world’s safest and most economically vibrant communities, it’s Orange County’s second-largest employer, contributing $4.8 billion annually to the local economy.
