UNC Hospitals and UNC REX Healthcare Earn Top Grades for Patient Safety from Leapfrog
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – UNC Hospitals in Chapel Hill and UNC REX Healthcare (UNC REX) in Raleigh earned top “A” grades for patient safety from The Leapfrog Group, putting them among the country’s safest hospitals.
The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses 30 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign letter grades to more than 2,600 U.S. hospitals twice per year. Only 844 hospitals nationwide received “A” grades in the Fall 2016 Leapfrog report. In addition, UNC REX is the only hospital in North Carolina – and one of only 72 nationwide – to receive straight A’s since Leapfrog began its safety scorecard in 2012.
Among other hospitals affiliated with UNC Health Care, High Point Regional in High Point, and Pardee Hospital in Hendersonville also received A’s.
“While this is just one measure of patient safety, we are proud that hospitals affiliated with UNC Health Care are recognized by Leapfrog to be among the safest in the country,” said Dr. Bill Roper, CEO of UNC Health Care. “We are committed to ensuring that all of our hospitals, clinics and physician practices provide excellent and safe care to all patients, every day.”
The Leapfrog Group is a national nonprofit organization that strives to promote safety, quality and affordability of health care in the U.S. by promoting transparency. The Hospital Safety Score uses a wide range of evidence-based measures related to patient safety to calculate a numerical score for more than 2,600 U.S. hospitals. The numerical safety score is then converted into a letter grade designed to give the public free and unbiased information they can use to protect themselves and their families.
“Protecting patients from harm is the most important charge for any hospital,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “We recognize and appreciate ‘A’ hospitals’ vigilance and continued dedication to keeping their patients safe.”
To see any hospital’s full grade, and to access consumer-friendly patient tips for staying safe in the hospital, visit www.hospitalsafetygrade.org or follow The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade on Twitter or Facebook. Consumers can also download the free Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade mobile app for Apple and Android devices.
