HPCI News: The 18th year of Leapfrog Hospital Survey kicks-off in April

To: Members and Selected Others

In April invitations will be mailed to hospitals across the U.S. asking them to voluntary complete the Leapfrog Hospital Survey. Regional Rollout Leaders will prepare and mail these invitations. HPCI is the Leader for greater Iowa. The CEOs of hospital can expect their invitation before the end of April. HPCI members and supporters are requesting their participation in the 2018 Leapfrog Hospital Survey. We are working to motivate improvement in health care quality as well as to promote consumerism, understanding and trust.


Leapfrog launched the annual Hospital Survey in 2001 asking hospitals to voluntary report on a set of three ‘leaps”. Two hundred (200) hospitals responded that year. Fast forward, nearly 2,000 hospitals participated in 2017 representation 65% of U.S. inpatient hospital beds. By participating in the Leapfrog Hospital Survey hospitals can:


  1. Benchmark their performance nationally, regionally, and locally on important quality and safety issues
  2. Create a performance improvement plan by charting their year-to-year progress on the Survey
  3. Demonstrate their commitment to quality and safety improvement to their Board of Directors
  4. Show their commitment to transparency, one of health care consumers’ most valued considerations in choosing a hospital

In 2012, Leapfrog launched the highly successful Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, a letter grade assigned to general hospitals rating how safe they are for patients. These grades are updated two times per year. Most recent grades are publically available for fifty (50) greater Iowa hospitals representing over 90% of hospital costs of Iowa employers and other purchasers.

What’s next? In addition to updating and improving the Hospital Survey and Hospital Safety Grade each year, the Leapfrog Group is working on a new survey of free-standing surgery centers and hospital based outpatient surgery units. Stay tuned.



Paul M. Pietzsch, MPH
HPCI - IHBA Office
4430 Ashley Park Drive
West Des Moines, Iowa 50265
(515) 778-6300

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