Prime Healthcare's Top Community Hospitals Rank Among the Best with an "A" for Patient Safety in 2017 Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades

(Ontario, Calif, November 16, 2017) – Prime Healthcare Hospitals spanning seven states have been named among the nation's safest hospitals by The Leapfrog Group, a national non-profit that evaluates hospitals on their quality and safety measures. Nine hospitals earned an "A" grade for hospital safety after Leapfrog's evaluation of more than 2,600 hospitals nationwide.

"National recognition for patient safety is a direct testament to our patient-centered culture of excellence,” said Prem Reddy, MD, Chairman, President & CEO of Prime Healthcare. "We are proud of the outstanding grade our physicians, nurses and staff earned for their commitment to deliver best-in-class health care for our patients across the country."

“We set the toughest standards in the industry, so hospitals that excel at Leapfrog deserve the finest recognition we can give them,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group.

The Hospital Safety Score measures a hospital’s overall performance in keeping patients safe from preventable harm, accidents, infections and medical errors. Award winning hospitals are the best at preventing harm and keeping their patients safe. Top Fall 2017 Prime hospital awardees include, Chino Valley Medical Center, Coshocton Regional Medical Center, Garden Grove Hospital Medical Center, Harlingen Medical Center, Landmark Medical Center, Pampa Regional Medical Center, St. Mary’s Medical Center, Saint Mary’s Regional Medical Center.

Leapfrog’s objective, peer-reviewed bi-annual evaluation provides data to help patients and their families make informed decisions about their healthcare and choosing a hospital. Developed under the guidance of the nation’s leading experts on patient safety, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Score is based on an analysis of 27 measures of publicly available hospital safety data, including rates of infections, injuries and oversights. Results recognize those hospitals making patient safety and the public reporting of quality and outcome measures a priority.

All Prime Healthcare hospitals are dedicated to creating a culture of high reliability and reducing harm by implementing robust, evidence-based practices that make a positive impact on patients and their quality of care.

“Receiving national recognition from organizations such as The Leapfrog Group is made possible by the collaborative work of our physicians, clinical and support staff with our patients and their families,” said Sunny Bhatia, MD, Chief Medical Officer of Prime Healthcare. “We’re very proud and inspired by our “A” rated hospitals and team members for their commitment to deliver high quality, compassionate healthcare and saving lives."

Among the measures implemented by Prime Healthcare to improve patient safety and outcomes are the bedside shift report to communicate a patient’s care plan with the patient and family at their bedside every shift, and a CPOE system that improves the monitoring of all orders across members of the care team to improve outcomes. Prime Healthcare also follows National Quality Forum (NQF) endorsed measures to improve leadership structure and systems, maximize feedback and intervention, enhance teamwork training and skill building and identify and mitigate risks and hazards.

The Leapfrog Group is one of the many rankings, ratings and scorecards in which Prime Healthcare participates to measure quality in patient care and patient satisfaction. To learn more on the methodology used in determining grades, visit the Hospital Safety Score website at www.hospitalsafetygrade.org.