MD Hospital Safety Ratings: 9 'A' Grades, 1 'D' Grade On List

Baltimore MD

10 November, 2021

12:26 PM

Description

MARYLAND — How safe are hospitals in Maryland? Numerous Maryland hospitals received top safety marks while others didn't quite measure up in The Leapfrog Group's annual fall safety grades. The nonprofit health care watchdog group grades hospitals twice a year, assigning letter grades from "A" to "F" based on each hospital's ability to protect patients from preventable errors, accidents, injuries and infections. The Leapfrog Group on Wednesday released the fall 2021 Hospital Safety Grade, which assigns a letter grade to the nation's general hospitals based on how well they prevent medical errors, accidents, injuries, and infections that kill or harm patients. The fall report represents the largest set of hospitals ever graded with grades assigned to 2,901 facilities. Be the first to know what's happening in your town and area. Sign up to get Patch emails and don't miss a minute of local and state news: patch.com/subscribe. "As the pandemic continues, we all have heightened awareness of the importance of hospitals in our communities and in our lives," said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group, in a news release. "It is critical that all hospitals put patient safety first. "Now we have more information on more hospitals than ever before, so people can protect themselves and their families," Binder said. In Maryland, nine hospitals received an "A" grade, 17 hospitals received a "B" grade, 15 hospitals received a "C" grade and one hospital received a "D" grade. No Maryland hospitals received an "F" grade. Here are the rankings, according to Leapfrog: A grade Anne Arundel Medical Center, AnnapolisGarrett Regional Medical Center, OaklandJohns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center, BaltimoreMercy Medical Center, BaltimoreThe Johns Hopkins Hospital, BaltimoreUM Baltimore Washington Medical Center, Glen BurnieUniversity of Maryland Shore Medical Center at Chestertown, ChestertownUniversity of Maryland Shore Medical Center at Easton, EastonUniversity of Maryland St. Joseph Medical Center, Towson B grade Carroll Hospital Center, WestminsterHoly Cross Germantown Hospital, GermantownHoward County General Hospital, ColumbiaMedStar Franklin Square Medical Center, BaltimoreMedStar Good Samaritan Hospital, BaltimoreMedStar Harbor Hospital, BaltimoreMedStar Montgomery Medical Center, OlneyMedStar Southern Maryland Hospital Center, ClintonMedStar St. Mary's Hospital, LeonardtownMedStar Union Memorial Hospital, BaltimoreMeritus Medical Center, HagerstownSuburban Hospital, BethesdaUnion Hospital, ElktonUniversity of Maryland Charles Regional Medical Center, La PlataUniversity of Maryland Medical Center, BaltimoreUniversity of Maryland Medical Center Midtown Campus, BaltimoreUPMC Western Maryland, CumberlandC grade Adventist HealthCare Fort Washington Medical Center, Fort WashingtonAdventist HealthCare Shady Grove Medical Center, RockvilleAdventist HealthCare White Oak Medical Center, Silver SpringAscension Saint Agnes Hospital, BaltimoreAtlantic General Hospital, BerlinCalvertHealth Medical Center, Prince FrederickDoctors Community Hospital, LanhamFrederick Health Hospital, FrederickGreater Baltimore Medical Center, TowsonHoly Cross Hospital, Silver SpringNorthwest Hospital, RandallstownSinai Hospital of Baltimore, BaltimoreTidalHealth Peninsula Regional, Inc., SalisburyUM Harford Memorial Hospital, Havre De GraceUniversity of Maryland Upper Chesapeake Medical Center, Bel Air D grade University of Maryland Capital Region Medical Center, Upper MarlboroTo determine each hospital's grade, a panel of medical experts selected 30 evidence-based measures of patient safety such as postoperative sepsis, blood leakage and kidney injury. They then determined the weight of each measure based on evidence, opportunity for improvement and patient impact. Data on each measure was collected through the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Information from the Leapfrog Hospital Survey, available to all hospitals to complete, also affects grades. Currently, Leapfrog does not assign grades to military or Veterans Administration hospitals, critical access hospitals, specialty hospitals, children's hospitals or outpatient surgery centers. The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade methodology has been peer-reviewed and published in the Journal of Patient Safety. The full methodology for the 2021 Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade is available online. Findings from the fall 2021 Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade include: Thirty-two percent of hospitals received an "A" grade; 26 percent received a "B," 35 percent received a "C," 7 percent received a "D," and less than 1 percent received an "F." The five states with the highest percentages of "A" hospitals are Virginia, North Carolina, Idaho, Massachusetts and Colorado. There were no "A" hospitals in Delaware, Washington, D.C. and North Dakota.