No hospital in New Jersey received a failing grade in the latest round of safety scoring released by The Leapfrog Group. But more than a dozen facilities fell short of an A or B grade.

In the spring 2021 report released Thursday, 26 of New Jersey’s 68 acute-care hospitals (38%) received an A for their ability to protect patients from avoidable infections, injuries and errors. Another 38% received a B from Leapfrog, a nonprofit watchdog organization representing health care consumers and purchasers.

Ten hospitals improved upon their grade from fall 2020, and four hospitals moved down a grade.

Based on the percentage of “A” grade hospitals, New Jersey moved from 17th to 14th in the nation. Saint Barnabas Medical Center, located in Livingston, is one of just 27 hospitals in the country to have achieved straight A grades since Leapfrog began grading in 2012.

Fifteen hospitals earned a C in the spring 2021 report. The only hospital to receive a D was East Orange General Hospital.

East Orange General Hospital did not respond to a request for comment. It has earned a D in every report from Leapfrog going back to spring 2019. It had a failing grade in fall 2018.

“No one wants to go into a hospital to be treated for one disease or have one type of surgery, and end up critically ill or leaving the hospital with another type of infection,” said Kate Shamszad with the New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute, which serves as the regional leader for Leapfrog in the Garden State.

Shamszad said with these grades, residents can gauge which hospital may be best and safest for procedures such as surgery or giving birth.

“We want to make it easy for people to seek safe care,” Shamszad said.

The latest report uses data that was collected immediately prior to the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. In many ways, according to The Leapfrog Group, the performance measures used in the spring 2021 report serve as a proxy for the safety of care provided to COVID-19 patients.

“For many, safety and quality are embedded in their daily work at all levels of the organization, which prepared them in turn to respond to the rapidly evolving pandemic,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “As a part of this culture, straight A hospitals have consistently shown a commitment to their workforce, empowering them to ask questions and share safety concerns.”

Spring 2021 Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades Name: Grade (Fall 2020 grade)

• Atlanticare Regional Medical Center – City Campus: C (C)
• Atlanticare Regional Medical Center – Mainland Campus: C (C)
• Bayshore Medical Center: A (A)
• Cape Regional Medical Center: B (B)
• Capital Health Medical Center: Hopewell C (C)
• Capital Health Regional Medical Center: C (C)
• CarePoint Health-Bayonne Medical Center: B (A)
• CarePoint Health-Christ Hospital: B (B)
• CarePoint Health-Hoboken University Medical Center: B (B)
• CentraState Medical Center: B (B)
• Chilton Medical Center: A (A)
• Clara Maass Medical Center: B (C)
• Community Medical Center: A (B)
• Cooper University Hospital: B (C)
• East Orange General Hospital: D (D)
• Englewood Hospital and Medical Center: A (A)
• Hackensack Meridian Health Mountainside Medical Center: B (B)
• Hackensack Meridian Health Palisades Medical Center: B (B)
• Hackensack Meridian Health Pascack Valley Medical Center: A (A)
• Hackensack University Medical Center: B (B)
• Hackettstown Regional Medical Center: C (C)
• Holy Name Medical Center: B (B)
• Hudson Regional Hospital: C (C)
• Hunterdon Medical Center: A (A)
• Inspira Medical Center Elmer: A (A)
• Inspira Medical Center Vineland: A (A)
• Jefferson Cherry Hill Hospital: A (A)
• Jefferson Stratford Hospital: A (A)
• Jefferson Washington Township Hospital: A (A)
• Jersey City Medical Center: B (B)
• Jersey Shore University Medical Center: A (B)
• JFK Medical Center: C (C)
• Monmouth Medical Center: A (A)
• Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus: B (B)
• Morristown Medical Center: A (A)
• Newark Beth Israel Medical Center: A (A)
• Newton Medical Center: A (A)
• Ocean Medical Center: A (A)
• Overlook Medical Center: A (B)
• Penn Medicine Princeton Medical Center: B (B)
• Raritan Bay Medical Center of Old Bridge: B (C)
• Raritan Bay Medical Center of Perth Amboy: B (B)
• Riverview Medical Center: B (B)
• Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital: B (B)
• Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital at Hamilton: A (A)
• Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Rahway: B (B)
• Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Somerset: A (A)
• Saint Barnabas Medical Center: A (A)
• Saint Clare’s Hospital of Denville: A (A)
• Saint Clare’s Hospital of Dover: A (A)
• Saint Michael’s Medical Center: B (A)
• Saint Peter’s University Hospital: A (A)
• Salem Medical Center: B (C)
• Shore Medical Center: A (B)
• Southern Ocean Medical Center: C (C)
• St. Francis Medical Center of Trenton: C (B)
• St. Joseph’s University Medical Center: C (C)
• St. Joseph’s Wayne Medical Center: C (D)
• St. Luke’s Warren Campus: A (A)
• St. Mary’s General Hospital: B (B)
• The Valley Hospital: B (A)
• Trinitas Regional Medical Center: C (C)
• University Hospital: C (D in spring 2020)
• Virtua Marlton Hospital: C (C)
• Virtua Memorial Hospital: C (C)
• Virtua Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital: B (B)
• Virtua Voorhees Hospital: B (B)
• Virtua Willingboro: B (B)

Contact reporter Dino Flammia at dino.flammia@townsquaremedia.com.

Read More: How safe is your hospital? New grades released by Leapfrog Group | https://nj1015.com/how-safe-is-your-hospital-new-grades-released-by-the-leapfrog-group/?utm_source=tsmclip&utm_medium=referral