For Immediate Release Contact: Carol Ann Campbell
cacampbell@njhcqi.org (973-567-1901)
New Jersey Ranks 1st for Highest Percentage of “A” Hospitals
PRINCETON – May 3, 2023 — The Leapfrog Group, a national nonprofit representing hundreds of employers and purchasers of health care — and driven in New Jersey by the New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute — today announced the Spring 2023, Hospital Safety Grades.
The independent grading system assigns an A, B, C, D, or F grade to nearly 3,000 general hospitals across the country based on over thirty national measures of preventable errors, injuries, accidents, and infections.
For the first time in several years, New Jersey had no D or F hospitals. Also of note, this year, New Jersey ranked 1st among states for the percentage of A hospitals; the state ranked 6th in A hospitals in Fall 2022. New Jersey also is the only state in the nation with 100% participation in the voluntary hospital safety survey.
Unfortunately, however, New Jersey mirrored the nation with a spike in hospital-acquired infections including Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI), and catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI). These hospital-acquired infections rose to a five-year high in hospitals during the COVID-19 pandemic and remain high nationwide, according to The Leapfrog Group’s Spring 2023 Hospital Safety Grade data.
“New Jersey hospitals deserve our praise for their commitment to participating in Leapfrog’s voluntary safety survey, and also for their high scores,” said Linda Schwimmer, President and CEO of the Quality Institute. “Yet the rise in hospital-acquired infections shows us that the work of advancing patient safety requires a continued, unrelenting effort. We hope to see New Jersey hospitals double down on their focused efforts to reduce hospital-acquired infections.”
Leah Binder, President and CEO of The Leapfrog Group, noted that hospital-acquired infections can be fatal. “We recognize the tremendous strain the pandemic put on hospitals and their
workforce, but alarming findings like these indicate hospitals must recommit to patient safety and build more resilience,” Binder said.
Here are the overall scores for 68 New Jersey hospitals that were graded.
- 35 A hospitals – 47% (2 more A’s than last round)
- 18 B hospitals – 47% (2 less B’s than last round)
- 15 C hospitals – 06% (1 less C than last round)
- 0 D hospital – 0% (3 less D’s than last round)
- 0 F hospital – 0% (same number of F’s as last round)
Fifty-three of the 68 hospitals (or 77%) that were graded received an A or B grade, which is 1% higher than Fall 2022. Thirteen hospitals went up a grade; six went down a grade.
Leapfrog was not able to assign a Safety Grade to two hospitals, Salem Medical Center and Bergen New Bridge, because required data was not available.
For more information about the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, as well as individual hospital grades and state rankings, please visit HospitalSafetyGrade.org and follow The Leapfrog Group on Facebook and Twitter. For more information about the Hospital Safety Survey, please visit https://ratings.leapfroggroup.org/
About the New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute
The New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute’s (Quality Institute) mission is to improve the safety, quality, and affordability of health care for everyone. Our membership comes from all stakeholders in health care. Together with our 120 plus members, we are working toward a world where all people receive safe, equitable, and affordable health care and live their healthiest lives.
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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 health care. The flagship Leapfrog Hospital Survey and new Leapfrog Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC) Survey collect and transparently report hospital and ASC 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.