Ascension Providence is the only hospital in Mobile to achieve the "A" rating from Leapfrog on the latest ratings released April 29.
The Leapfrog Group is a national organization committed to improving health care quality and safety for consumers and purchasers. The Safety Grade assigns an A, B, C, D or F grade to hospitals across the country based on their performance in preventing medical errors, infections and other harms among patients in their care.
"I'm grateful for our physicians, nurses, and associates at every level who have worked together to earn this recognition, particularly as we continue to care for our community during the COVID-19 pandemic," said Todd Kennedy, president of Ascension Providence. "This recognition provides further evidence that we continue to provide high-quality, compassionate care in the safest possible setting for anyone who needs it."
Leapfrog's ratings of more than 2,700 U.S. hospitals are based on up to 27 measures of safety data such as hand hygiene, risk mitigation, and discharge communication, as well as outcome measures such as falls, pressure ulcers, and infections. Leapfrog provides the only hospital ratings program based exclusively on hospitals' prevention of medical errors and other harms to patients in their care.
"An 'A' safety grade is an elite designation that your community should be proud of," said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. "The past year has been extraordinarily difficult for hospitals, but the results at Ascension Providence show us it is possible to keep a laser focus on patients and their safety, no matter what it takes."
To learn more about the Hospital Safety Grades, visit https://www.hospitalsafetygrade.org/.
In 2020, Blue Cross and Blue Shield also recognized Ascension Providence as a Blue Distinction Center+ for total hip and knee surgery, spine surgery and cardiac care. Research shows that facilities designated as Blue Distinction Centers demonstrate better quality and improved outcomes for patients, compared with their peers.
This week, Ascension Providence also received a 4-star rating this week from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in new ratings released April 28 by CMS. The federal agency's Overall Star Rating provides consumers with a simple overall rating generated by combining multiple dimensions of quality into a single summary score.
The overall hospital rating ranges from 1 to 5 stars. The more stars, the better a hospital performed on the available quality measures. Ascension Providence was the only hospital in Mobile to receive a 4-star rating.