Grinnell Regional Medical Center Receives National Recognition for Outstanding Achievement in Patient Safety and Quality Care
Sixty-five (65) Named "2010 Top Hospital" by The Leapfrog Group
Des Moines, December 9, 2010--The Leapfrog Group's annual class of top hospitals was announced last week in Washington, DC at Leapfrog's 10th anniversary meeting and included 53 urban, 5 rural, and 7 children's hospitals. It includes Grinnell Regional Medical Center as a top rural hospital.
The 2010 list includes university and other teaching hospitals, children's hospitals and community hospitals in rural, suburban and urban settings. The selection is based on the results of the Leapfrog Group's national survey that measures hospitals' performance in crucial areas of patient safety and quality. The results are posted on a website open to the patients and families, the public and employers and other purchasers of health care. It is the most complete picture available of a hospital's quality and safety. The website is www.leapfroggroup.org.
"We are very proud and pleased that Grinnell Regional Medical Center received this national quality award. Congratulations to their leadership team" said Garth Bowen, Co-Chair of the Iowa Health Buyers Alliance.
"Healthcare reform is going to require providers, insurers, and employers/purchasers to work together to improve the quality, efficiency, and affordability of care" said Becky Dunk, Senior Manager, Health and Welfare Benefits, AEGON USA and Leapfrog Board Member.
The 1200 hospitals that publicly report their performance via the Leapfrog Hospital Survey do so voluntarily. "In a way, that makes all of them top hospitals," said Leah Binder, Leapfrog's CEO. "It represents an enormous commitment by the institution to not only measure what they do against tough standards, but also to work for change and be transparent about it. And it's a signal to employers and other health care purchasers in their community that these hospitals care." In the greater Iowa region, the Iowa Health Buyers Alliance and the Health Policy Corporation of Iowa mobilize local employers and purchasers of health care to garner hospital participation in the national survey. They have partnered with Leapfrog as the Greater Iowa Leapfrog Group Regional Rollout sponsors since 2007. The Leapfrog Group recognized Cedar Rapids St. Luke's Medical Center as one of the nation's highest value hospitals in 2008.
The Iowa Health Buyers Alliance is an association of health care consumers and purchasers working for a patient centered health system, improved quality, wellness and transparency and public disclosure. Membership in the Alliance is open to public and private employers, unions and consumer groups. For more information see our web site:www.ihbaonline.org. The Health Policy Corporation of Iowa (HPCI) is a business and health coalition developing joint initiatives, conducting research and education, and applying solutions to improve the quality and affordability of health care in Iowa.
The Leapfrog hospital survey, which launched in 2001, focuses on four critical areas of patient safety: the use of computer physician order entry (CPOE) to prevent medication errors; standards for doing high-risk procedures such as heart surgery; protocols and policies to reduce medical errors and other safe practices recommended by the National Quality Forum; and adequate nurse and physician staffing. In addition, hospitals are measured on their progress in preventing infections and other hospital-acquired conditions and adopting policies on the handling of serious medical errors, among other things.
For a complete list of 2010 Leapfrog Top Hospitals, visit www.leapfroggroup.org.
The Leapfrog Group (www.leapfroggroup.org) uses 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 Leapfrog Group was founded in November 2000 by the Business Roundtable, and is now independently operated with support from its members.
The Leapfrog Hospital Survey is the gold standard for comparing hospitals' performance on the national standards of safety, quality, and efficiency that are most relevant to consumers and purchasers of care. Hospitals that participate in The Leapfrog Hospital Survey achieve hospital-wide improvements that translate into millions of lives and dollars saved. Leapfrog's purchaser members use Survey results to inform their employees, and develop and conduct purchasing strategies.