See which area hospitals received an 'A' in patient safety grading

Nov. 15—Hospitals in the Dayton region scored high when it comes to safety under the biannual review from the Leapfrog Group, an independent national watchdog organization that grades hospitals on how well they prevents medical errors and harm to patients.

The Leapfrog Group awarded an "A" safety grade for fall 2024 to all five of Premier Health's hospitals and five of Kettering Health's medical centers, according to Leapfrog's analysis.

"Preventable deaths and harm in hospitals have been a major policy concern for decades," said Leah Binder, president and CEO of the Leapfrog Group.

Leapfrog's latest safety grades reveal that hospitals across the country are making notable gains in patient safety, she said.

"Next, we need hospitals to accelerate this progress-because no one should have to die from a preventable error in a hospital," Binder said.

Straight-A hospitals and national improvements

All of Premier Health hospitals received "A" grades, and those include Atrium Medical Center, Miami Valley Hospital, Miami Valley Hospital North, Miami Valley Hospital South and Upper Valley Medical Center.

"A good patient experience begins with ensuring patient safety and delivering high quality care to every patient every time. This takes personal commitment and shared responsibility from all of our caregivers," said Dr. Roberto Colón, chief medical officer for Premier Health. "Our patients and their well-being always come first."

Premier Health employs more than 11,000 people in the region, and Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton is the region's only level I trauma center. In addition, Premier Health provides care at its seven emergency departments, eight urgent care locations and more than 130 outpatient locations.

The Leapfrog Group assigns an "A," "B," "C," "D," or "F" grade to general hospitals across the country based on more than 30 national performance measures reflecting errors, accidents, injuries and infections, as well as systems that hospitals have in place to prevent harm.

The high grades being seen in the Dayton region come as Leapfrog has reported gains in hospital safety metrics nationwide.

Since fall 2022 when health care-associated infection rates were at their highest peak since 2016, average health care-associated infection scores have declined dramatically, Leapfrog said, including within the following categories: — Central line-associated bloodstream infections decreased by 38% — Catheter-associated urinary tract infections decreased by 36% — Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) decreased by 34%

Hand hygiene practices have also improved, said Katie Stewart, Leapfrog's director of health care ratings. Leapfrog began reporting a tough new standard for hand hygiene in 2020, the organization said.

"Our hand hygiene standard focuses on a variety of different things," Stewart said. "We look at education and making sure staff and those that are interacting with patients and the patient care space are well-educated on hand hygiene and when to perform it."

Leapfrog also looks at infrastructure that is in place, including soap dispenser that are being refilled and alcohol-based hand sanitizer, she said.

"We also look at monitoring, so keeping track of hand hygiene compliance, either through direct observation or using a system that can monitor that electronically," Stewart said.

The percentage of hospitals achieving the standard has increased from 11% to 78%, according to Leapfrog.

Kettering Health receives mostly 'A' grades

Kettering Health medical centers receiving an "A" are Kettering Health Hamilton, Kettering Health Main Campus, Kettering Health Miamisburg, Soin Medical Center and Kettering Health Troy.

"Patient safety is a top priority at Kettering Health, and our 'A' grade facilities reflect that," said Jennifer Shull, chief nursing officer for Kettering Health.

"I'm grateful to our staff and providers who continue to keep the safety of our patients at the forefront of everything they do by continuing to improve and innovate to deliver safe, high-quality care in the communities we serve," Shull said.

Kettering Health Dayton received a "B," scoring below average in areas of certain types of infections, blood clots and patient falls and injuries, according to Leapfrog, as well as in areas of communication about medications and responsiveness of hospital staff.

Kettering Health Washington Township received a "C," scoring below in areas similar to the Kettering Health Dayton.

Kettering Health is made up of 14 medical centers and more than 120 outpatient locations throughout western Ohio, as well as Kettering Health Medical Group-with more than 700 board-certified providers. It employs more than 14,000 people in the region.

Other hospitals in the region

Other hospitals in the region that Leapfrog graded include Wright-Patterson Medical Center at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, which received an "A" grade.

For the Mercy Health hospitals, Mercy Health — Fairfield Hospital, which is located in Butler County, received a "B" grade. It scored below average in categories of surgical site infection, surgical wounds splitting open, serious breathing problem after surgery, collapsed lung, nursing and bedside care and having specially trained doctors treating ICU patients, according to Leapfrog.

Mercy Health — Springfield Regional Medical Center received a "D" grade, scoring below average in areas of infections and categories related to staff, according to Leapfrog. It scored average or above average in different surgery-related categories.

"While Mercy Health supports quality reports for consumers, it's important to note they all measure quality a little differently depending upon their focus. As a result, they are not always an accurate depiction of the care someone will receive or the experience they will have," Mercy Health said in an organizational statement.

Some of the data used to calculate grades may be older and may not reflect more recent performance improvement efforts, the hospital said.

A few categories related to staff did not have any score due to the Springfield hospital declining to report those items, likely contributing to the lower grade.

"Leapfrog calculates grades on eligible hospitals regardless of whether they complete their voluntary survey so certain aspects of its methodology award higher scores for opting to respond," Mercy Health said.

Mercy Health's mantra is "Safety First, Safety Always," the hospital said, also saying it is committed to taking every measure possible to ensure they are maintaining the highest standards of patient safety and quality outcomes.

Leapfrog is just one tool among many patients can use when making health care decisions such as choosing a hospital, Mercy Health said.

"We support patients utilizing all available tools at their disposal, but also realize the variation among numerous reports and rankings on hospital performance can be confusing. So we'd urge patients to consult with their doctors, nurses, and other health care providers who know their specific clinical needs," Mercy Health said.

In rural northern Miami Valley, Wayne HealthCare in Greenville and Wilson Health in Sidney each received "C" grades.

For Wayne HealthCare, it received a number of average or above average scores, but it was missing data for certain categories, particularly in areas of infection and practices of hospital staff to prevent errors, according to Leapfrog. Wilson Health was missing data in similar categories.