Community Corner
Kaiser Permanente Hospitals in Northern California Receive Top Safety Scores For The Second Year
Hospital safety records examined by The Leapfrog Group show that Kaiser Permanente hospitals once again rank high in limiting patient injuries, reducing medical errors and preventing infections
Oakland, CA, May 8, 2013 – Eighteen Kaiser Permanente hospitals in Northern California – including hospitals in Richmond, Fremont and Hayward - received the top score of “A” by the Leapfrog Group in its annual safety report, which examined and graded more than 2,500 hospitals throughout the United States.
The Leapfrog Group, an independent national nonprofit run by employers and other large purchasers of health benefits, released its Hospital Safety Scores after examining publicly available data on patient injuries, medical and medication errors and infections at U.S. hospitals, which were then assigned A, B, C, D, or F grades for their safety records.
Find out what's happening in Pinole-Herculeswith free, real-time updates from Patch.
”We are pleased to see that once again Kaiser Permanente is being recognized for the high-quality health care it provides throughout its hospitals,” said Gregory Adams, President of Kaiser Foundation Hospitals/Health Plan in Northern California. “These top safety scores demonstrate the hard work of our physicians, nurses and staff to ensure our patients are being cared for safely and receive world-class treatment at our facilities.”
Kaiser Permanente hospitals in Northern California with “A” scores were: Antioch, Fremont, Fresno, Hayward, Manteca, Modesto, Redwood City, Richmond, Sacramento, San Jose, San Rafael, Santa Clara, Santa Rosa, San Francisco, South Sacramento, South San Francisco, Vallejo and Walnut Creek. Additionally, Kaiser Permanente Oakland received a “B” score.
Find out what's happening in Pinole-Herculeswith free, real-time updates from Patch.
“These scores consistently demonstrate the superiority of Kaiser Permanente's integrated, technologically enabled approach to patient care,” said Dr. Robert Pearl, executive director and CEO of The Permanente Medical Group. “Earning these region-leading hospital scores, combined with being ranked the highest in California by both the National Committee for Quality Assurance and the California Office of the Patient Advocate, is the equivalent of winning the Triple Crown. This recognition is a tribute to the exceptional skill of our physicians and staff.”
The Leapfrog Group is a coalition of public and private purchasers of employee health coverage founded in 2000 to work for improvements in health care safety, quality and affordability. It is an independent advocacy group working with a broad range of partners, including hospitals and insurers. Since 2006, the organization has published an annual list of Top Hospitals in the U.S. using national measures of health-care quality, safety and efficiency. This is the second year it has published the Hospital Safety Scores, which uses 26 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to produce a single score representing a hospital’s overall capacity to keep patients safe from infections, injuries, and medical and medication errors.
To see all hospital scores as they compare nationally and locally, visit www.hospitalsafetyscore.org, the Hospital Safety Score website, which also provides information on how the public can protect themselves and loved ones during a hospital stay. Local hospitals’ scores are also available on the free mobile app, available at www.hospitalsafetyscore.org.
About Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We are recognized as one of America’s leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Founded in 1945, our mission is to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve more than 9 million members in nine states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal physicians, specialists and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the-art care delivery and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education and the support of community health. For more information, go to: kp.org/newscenter.
About The Leapfrog Group
The Leapfrog Group (www.leapfroggroup.org) is a national organization using the collective leverage of large purchasers of health care to initiate breakthrough improvements in the safety, quality, and affordability of health care for Americans. The flagship Leapfrog Hospital Survey allows purchasers to structure their contracts and purchasing to reward the highest performing hospitals. The Leapfrog Group was founded in November 2000 with support from the Business Roundtable and national funders, and is now independently operated with support from its purchaser and other members.