Covenant Health Hospitals Receive “A” Grades in Spring 2016 Hospital Safety Ratings

Fort Loudoun Medical Center, Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center, LeConte Medical Center, Methodist Medical Center and Roane Medical Center have received “A” grades in The Leapfrog Group’s Spring 2016 Hospital Safety Scores, ranking the hospitals among the safest in the U.S.

In addition, Methodist Medical Center continued its “Straight A” recognition, signifying that the hospital has never received a grade lower than “A” since the safety scores first launched in June 2012.

“Patient safety and a constant focus on the quality of care we provide are top priorities for Covenant Health,” said Mike Belbeck, executive vice president of operations. “We are pleased that five Covenant hospitals received Leapfrog’s highest scores, and we will continue to focus on patient safety as part of our ongoing commitment to excellence in all aspects of patient care.”

“Hospitals that earn an ‘A’ from Leapfrog are leaders in saving lives, and we commend them and urge their continued vigilance,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group, a national nonprofit organization focused on the quality and safety of American health care. The group’s Hospital Safety Score assigns letter grades to hospitals based on their record of patient safety, to give consumers information they can use to protect themselves from errors, injuries, accidents, and infections.

Developed under the guidance of Leapfrog’s Blue Ribbon Expert Panel, the Hospital Safety Score uses 30 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign A, B, C, D and F grades to more than 2,500 U.S. hospitals twice per year. Scores are calculated by top patient safety experts, peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public. For the first time, the Hospital Safety Score includes five measures of patient-reported experience with hospitals as well as information about two of the most common infections, C. diff and MRSA.

“The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Scores are one of many measurement tools that give us useful information about our hospitals’ performance. Along with other publicly available reports, these tools can offer patients and consumers helpful information related to hospital care,” said Jim VanderSteeg, president and CEO.

To see the full scores and to access consumer-friendly tips related to hospital safety, visit www.hospitalsafetyscore.org. Consumers can also follow The Hospital Safety Score on social media and download the free Hospital Safety Score app for mobile devices.