Hospitals and health systems throughout the United States have long shared quality and safety data with the public in order for patients and families to make informed decisions about their healthcare.
 
Navicent Health has long shared its quality and safety data with the Centers for Medicatd and Medicare, and groups who rely on this data, including the Leapfrog Group. This week,  Leapfrog released its most recent scores, ranking The Medical Center, Navicent Health with a grade of “B.”
 
“Navicent Health is committed to quality and patient safety, and is continually seeking ways to increase the high caliber of quality care that we offer to our patients. Over the past year, we have taken measurable steps for continuous improvement, and applaud our physicians and caregivers for their dedication to this effort,” said Dr. Ninfa M. Saunders, President and CEO of Navicent Health.
 
Among those initiatives are the following:
 
Reduced readmissions for patients with chronic disease including COPD, heart failure and diabetes through new programs offered by Healthy Communities, Navicent Health.

Reduced hospital acquired infections by 54 percent through programs focused on specific infection types.

Reduced sepsis rates by implementing the Sepsis Advisor Early Warning System and a sepsis coordinator facilitiating rapid response.

Improved Computerized Physician Order Entry medication order rates.

Oconee Regional Medical Center, now known as Navicent Health Baldwin, received a “C” rating for the time period observed by the Leapfrog Group. Now part of the Navicent Health system, like MCNH, the staff at NHB are continuously improving quality and safety measures.

“Navicent Health currently employs multiple initiatives that help us identify opportunities for improvement.  This includes implementation of national best practices by our clinicians.  We value transparency and consumer knowledge about the quality of care and safety provided by our hospital. Many organizations – including Leapfrog, Hospital Compare and US News & World Report – rate hospital performance using their own individual sets of criteria. While these ranking systems can be helpful for consumers, we encourage patients to speak with their doctor to make the best hospital choice for their needs,” said Dr. Chris Hendry, Chief Operating Officer of Enterprise Clinical Systems for Navicent Health.

When making healthcare decisions, patients should use all available tools at their disposal such as talking with friends and family and consulting with doctors, nurses and other healthcare providers. The latest Leapfrog rating system is just one tool among many patients can use when making healthcare decisions such as choosing a hospital.
 
As with any report card, the Leapfrog grades must be interpreted in context. For example, some of the data used to calculate hospital grades are more than two years old, and may not reflect more recent performance improvement efforts. In addition, not all measures apply to all patients, which can matter when report cards are used as the primary tool to select a hospital for a specific procedure.