The Triad's three primary hospitals retained their patient safety grades in the fall 2024 report released Friday by national health-care watchdog The Leapfrog Group.
Greensboro's Moses Cone kept its "B" rating for the second report of the year, down from the "A" rating it had received in five reports before that.
Meanwhile, Forsyth Medical Center kept an "A" rating for the 12th consecutive report, while Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist was ranked at "B" for the third consecutive report.
For Cone, affiliate Wesley Long earned a "B" for the second consecutive report, while affiliate Annie Penn dropped from an A to B. Alamance Regional dropped from a B to C.
With Novant Health Inc's Medical Park Hospital retaining an A grade for the 18th consecutive report, as well as Kernersville and Thomasville medical centers staying at A, the Winston-Salem metro area continued to be listed among the top metros in the nation as based on highest percentage of A hospitals.
The nonprofit Leapfrog is founded by larger employers and private health care purchasers. Its overall and individual category grades can reflect multiple years of review.
Leapfrog assigns letter grades from A to F to hospitals based on their ability to prevent errors, injuries, accidents and infections, and improve patient satisfaction.
Leapfrog researchers said they have determined that when compared with a hospital rated an A, patients face on average a 35% greater risk of avoidable death at a B hospital, an 88% greater risk at a C hospital and a 92% greater risk at a D or F hospital.
Novant said the "A" grades are a reflection in part of the Novant Health Institute for Safety & Quality that debuted in 2018, which focuses on patient outcomes and safety, clinical excellence and infection prevention.
Baptist-affiliated Davie Medical Center has had an A grade in each of the seven Leapfrog reports that it qualified for review. High Point dropped from a B to C, while Lexington improved from C to A, and Wilkes from C to B.
Altogether, 41 of the 88 North Carolina hospitals evaluated by Leapfrog received an A grade, or 46.7% -- the fourth highest percentage nationwide.
By comparison, North Carolina was ranked eighth in the spring 2024 report, third in the fall 2023 report, sixth in the spring 2023 report, seventh in the fall 2022 report and first in the spring 2022 report.
Closer evaluations
Leapfrog evaluates five primary patient-safety categories: infections; problems with surgery; safety problems; practices to prevent errors; and doctors, nurses and hospital staff.
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The performance in each category is based on several subcategories in each area.
For Moses Cone, its performance in the five primary categories was: infections (two above average, three average, one below average); problems with surgery (two above average, two average, three below average); safety problems (three above average, three average, one below average); practices to prevent errors (two above average, three average, one below average); and doctors, nurses and hospital staff (four above average, two average).
Cone could not be immediately reached for comment on its latest grade from Leapfrog.
For Forsyth Medical Center, its performance in the five primary categories was: infections (six subcategories: one above average, five average); problems with surgery (four above average, one average, two below average); safety problems (five above average, one average, one below average); practices to prevent errors (four above average, two average); and doctors, nurses and hospital staff (four above average, one average, one below average).
"Our care teams work tirelessly to create meaningful impact for our patients with safe, high-quality care," said Dr. David Priest, Novant's chief safety and quality officer, said in a statement.
"While we track these metrics internally and can see our progress in real time, ratings like Leapfrog, though not comprehensive, give patients a glimpse into our prior performance to help guide their future health care decisions. We are proud of our continued recognition and will keep innovating in our work to create a healthier future for our patients and communities."
For Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist, its performance in the five primary categories was: infections (three average, three below average); problems with surgery (five above average, one average, one below average); safety problems (three above average, four below average); practices to prevent errors (four above average, two average); and doctors, nurses and hospital staff (three above average, two average, one below average).
"These grades are a testament to the relentless efforts of our health care professionals and the innovative strategies we employ to continually enhance the health and well-being of our communities," Dr. Scott Rissmiller, chief physician executive for Atrium parent company Advocate Health, said in a statement.
Leapfrog perspective
The fall 2023 grades are the first to reflect hospital performance since the national public health COVID-19 emergency was declared over on May 11 by the Biden administration.
Since, Leapfrog placed additional emphasis on the average risk of three health-care associated infections: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA); central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI); and catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI).
Those infections, according to Leapfrog, spiked to a five-year high in hospitals during the COVID-19 pandemic and remain at elevated levels.
However, since fall 2022, Leapfrog said Friday that CLABSI infections have dropped 38% nationwide, as well as CAUTI infections by 36% and MRSA infections by 34%.
"Patient experience is very difficult to influence without delivering better care, so these findings are encouraging," said Leah Binder, president and chief executive of Leapfrog.
"We were also pleased to see the decrease in preventable infections, which cause terrible suffering and sometimes death.
"When we look at these positive trends, we see lives saved -- and that is gratifying."
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