Dive Brief:
- The Leapfrog Group's grades, assigned to hospitals based on patient safety measures, varied significantly across facilities this fall, with scores generally in line with this year's spring report, which used data from before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a release out Wednesday.
- Among 2,901 facilities scored by the Leapfrog Group, 32% received A grades this fall. Another 26% of hospitals received B grades while 35% scored a C.
- This was the first time hospitals were graded on post-operative sepsis, kidney injury and blood leakage measures. Post-operative sepsis is an incredibly costly condition to treat and one that kills an estimated 160,000 people in the country annually. Black patients are twice as likely as White patients to be diagnosed with the condition, according to Leapfrog.
Dive Insight:
As Americans return to medical settings for care they've delayed throughout the pandemic, the fall grades show some safety measures at hospital staying relatively steady despite facilities being significantly stressed with high inpatient loads and staffing shortages.
Still, only 7% of hospitals received D grades, and less than 1% received an F.
The scores are based on more than 30 measures of patient safety, reflecting how well hospitals prevent medical errors, accidents, injuries and infections that can kill or harm patients. The 2021 fall grades included the largest set of hospitals ever graded, Leapfrog said.
Ultimately, the five states with the highest percentage of A-scoring hospitals were Virginia, North Carolina, Idaho, Massachusetts and Colorado.
Delaware, Washington, D.C. and North Dakota had no hospitals with an A.
Leapfrog updates its grades every fall and spring, and this spring's scores were based on data collected prior to the pandemic. The fall scores include data primarily collected prior to the pandemic, though some data from 2020 and 2021 is used, according to a spokesperson.
Among 2,700 hospitals graded this spring, a third received A grades, 24% received a B and 35% received C grades.
In line with scores received this fall, 7% of hospitals received a D and less than 1% received an F in the spring.