Meritus Medical Center earns top hospital safety grade

Meritus Medical Center received an “A” Hospital Safety Grade from The Leapfrog Group, a national nonprofit upholding the standard of patient safety in hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers. This national distinction celebrates Meritus’ achievements in prioritizing patient safety by protecting patients from preventable harm and errors. The new grades reflect performance primarily during the height of the pandemic.

"This top-quality rating is a testament to the dedication of our Meritus teams who are continuously working to improve quality and patient safety,” said Carrie Adams, Pharm.D., Chief Operating Officer.

“Our hospital has a goal of zero harm and we work hard each day to create the culture of safety needed to support our patients. Caring for our neighbors is an absolute privilege and ensuring that care is provided in a safe and healing environment is a top priority. Thank you all for being an ‘A’ each day,” Adams said.

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

“This new update of Hospital Safety Grades shows that, at the national level, we saw deterioration in patient safety with the pandemic,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “But this hospital received an ‘A’ despite those challenges. I congratulate all the leaders, staff, volunteers and clinicians who together made that possible.”

The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade is the only hospital ratings program based exclusively on hospital prevention of medical errors and harm to patients. The grading system is peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public. Grades are updated twice annually, in the fall and spring.

To learn more about Meritus’ commitment to safety and top-quality care, visit MeritusHealth.com/ZeroHarm.