Southeast Minnesota hospitals’ safety grades stay consistent as state’s overall score declines

ROCHESTER — The latest round of hospital safety grades from the Leapfrog Group are out, and Southeast Minnesota hospitals' scores have remained consistent on the A-to-F scale.

Mayo Clinic's eligible hospitals in Minnesota — Rochester, Austin, Fairmont, Mankato and Red Wing — all earned A's in fall 2024, consistent with their spring 2024 rankings.

"We are extremely proud that all nine eligible Mayo Clinic hospitals earned the highest marks from the Leapfrog Group, earning A grades for patient safety," Dr. Sean Dowdy, Mayo Clinic's chief value officer, said in a statement. "Regardless of the quality measure used, Mayo Clinic continues to be top-ranked across a variety of rating agencies. This success is thanks to the incredible work of our truly category-of-one staff."

Olmsted Medical Center Hospital and Winona Health Hospital were awarded C's, staying stable with their spring 2024 and fall 2023 rankings. Owatonna Hospital also earned a C, dropping from an A this spring.

Scores for some hospitals come with nuance. Some of the data Leapfrog uses in its grades comes from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, while some figures are self-reported by the hospitals themselves. In statements to the Post Bulletin, OMC and Winona Health said they do not participate in the survey or self-report data to Leapfrog.

"Leapfrog's report on Olmsted Medical Center is not reflective of the quality and satisfaction measures that OMC tracks regularly," OMC said in a statement. "Often, OMC's inpatient volumes are not statistically significant for LeapFrog's report. Also, since we do not formally participate in the LeapFrog survey, any data reported as imputed is inaccurate. Olmsted Medical Center is a four-star performer on HospitalCompare in patient satisfaction and quality outcomes."

For Winona Health, "our focus is on quality metrics we are responsible for as they relate to Value Based Purchasing, CMS and state quality measures," the health system said in a statement.

Gundersen St. Elizabeth's Hospital was not included in the Leapfrog safety grades report.

Overall, patient safety factors such as hand hygiene and health care-associated infections have improved nationwide, Leapfrog said in its press release.

"Preventable deaths and harm in hospitals have been a major policy concern for decades," said Leapfrog Group President and CEO Leah Binder. "So, it is good news that Leapfrog's latest Safety Grades reveal that hospitals across the country are making notable gains in patient safety, saving countless lives."

"Next, we need hospitals to accelerate this progress — because no one should have to die from a preventable error in a hospital," she continued.

Minnesota fell in the state rankings, going from No. 29 in spring 2024 to No. 42. The Mayo Clinic hospitals were the only facilities in Minnesota that earned A's.