The Leapfrog Group is a nonprofit organization committed to driving quality, safety and transparency in the U.S. healthcare system.
The Leapfrog Group is a nonprofit organization
committed to driving quality, safety and
transparency in the U.S. healthcare system.
Delaware County Memorial Hospital (DCMH) is one of 11 hospitals in the five-county region, and 823 nationwide, to receive an “A” grade from the Leapfrog Group for its commitment to reducing errors, infections and accidents that can harm patients. The Leapfrog Group is a nonprofit organization committed to driving quality, safety and transparency in the U.S. healthcare system.
The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades initiative is a broad-based program that focuses on complications and adverse event rates from all patient populations. It was developed under the guidance of an expert panel and uses 30 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign A, B, C, D and F grades to more than 2,600 U.S. hospitals twice per year. Grades are calculated by top patient safety experts, peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public.
Eric Dobkin, M.D., FACS, FCCM, chief quality officer and vice president of Quality and Patient Safety for Crozer-Keystone Health System, says that DCMH’s achievement reflects a tremendous collaborative effort. “This score represents not only the clinical work done by our physicians, nurses and ancillary staff, but also the efforts of those in non-clinical roles,” he says. “It required a great deal of support from various departments – especially our quality and nursing departments. In addition, our board of directors felt very strongly that patient safety should be a top priority, and leadership’s engagement and support of safety initiatives also helped us to create and maintain a culture of safety.” Dobkin points to programs throughout the Crozer-Keystone Health System – such as daily check-ins for safety, the use of “high-reliability organization” tools and behaviors; teamwork and communication – as key components of the patient safety program.
“Hospitals that earn top marks nationally in the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade have achieved the highest safety standards in the country,” says Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “That takes commitment from every member of the hospital staff, who all deserve thanks and congratulations when their hospitals achieve an ‘A’ Safety Grade.”
Robert Haffey, president of DCMH, echoes this sentiment. “On behalf of hospital and health system management, I’d like to thank every member of the DCMH team,” he says. “No matter what role each of us plays, everything we do is in the best interest of our patients. I’m proud of our team and thank them for their commitment to taking patient safety very seriously. This ‘A’ grade is a direct result of their performance.”
DCMH patients can rest assured that they will receive high-quality care provided by a sensitive and diligent staff. “The community should feel proud to have such a high-caliber resource available to them,” Dobkin says. “This is a tremendous achievement.”
To see DCMH’s full grade, and to access consumer-friendly patient tips for staying safe in the hospital, visit hospitalsafetygrade.org or follow the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade on Twitter or Facebook. Consumers can also download the free Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade mobile app for Apple and Android devices.
Visit crozerkeystone.org/DCMH to learn more about DCMH and the Crozer-Keystone Health System.
About Delaware County Memorial Hospital
A fixture in its community since 1927, DCMH offers a wide range of services – including inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation and physical therapy, surgical and cancer services – and treats more than 36,000 emergency patients each year. In addition, the hospital has been recognized for excellence in maternity and stroke care as well as joint replacement surgery. DCMH is a member of the Crozer-Keystone Health System, Delaware County’s largest employer.
About The Leapfrog Group
Founded in 2000 by large employers and other purchasers, The Leapfrog Group is a national nonprofit organization driving a movement for giant leaps forward in the quality and safety of American healthcare. The flagship Leapfrog Hospital Survey collects and transparently reports hospital performance, empowering purchasers to find the highest-value care and giving consumers the lifesaving information they need to make informed decisions. The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, Leapfrog’s other main initiative, assigns letter grades to hospitals based on their record of patient safety, helping consumers protect themselves and their families from errors, injuries, accidents and infections.
