Published in the Asbury Park Press by Michael L. Diamond
CentraState Medical Center in Freehold Township and Southern Ocean Medical Center in Stafford have made giant strides in patient quality and safety, according to a report released Wednesday by a health care advocacy group.
The two hospitals saw their grades jump from C’s last fall to A’s this spring, helping the Shore improve its standing in the survey by the Leapfrog Group.
“The overall grade gives you a chance to see there is a variance in hospital to hospital and it can make a difference in outcomes,” said Patricia Kelmar, senior policy adviser with New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute, an advocacy group that partners with the Leapfrog Group.
The Leapfrog Group, a coalition of big employers and other health care purchasers, uses 30 metrics ranging from the number of hospital acquired infections to the adoption of best safety practices to produce letter grades.
Its goal is to prod hospitals to cut down on what it sees as preventable errors that lead to higher costs. And it comes as hospital administrators say the relatively newfound focus on quality is unlikely to change no matter what happens to the Affordable Care Act.
New Jersey’s 68 hospitals appear to be making inroads. Nearly 40 percent of them received A’s in the latest Leapfrog Group report, ranking 15th nationwide. Last fall, it ranked 17th.
New Jersey Hospital Association officials said it validates some of the steps their members have taken since Obamacare went into effect in 2010.
The trade group focused on safety measures in 13 categories, including patient falls; urinary tract infections; and the readmission of patients within 30 days of being discharged. And it managed to avert more than 77,000 cases of patient harm, saving $641 million between 2012 and 2016, according to a recent report.
“Every year it gets better and stronger,” said Aline Holmes, senior vice president of clinical affairs for the New Jersey Hospital Association. “But they’re really looking at reducing adverse events and (improving) quality of care.”
In the latest Leapfrog Group report, Monmouth and Ocean counties’ nine hospitals received a total of five A’s, one B and three C’s.
Where do they stand?
Bayshore Community Hospital, Holmdel:
Spring 2017: C
Fall 2016: C
Better than national average: Sixteen categories out of 30, including: leadership structure; teamwork training; urinary tract infections; and colorectal surgery infections.
CentraState Medical Center, Freehold Township:
Spring 2017: A
Fall 2016: C
Better than national average: Twenty-two categories out of 30, including: teamwork training; nurse communication; urinary tract infections; and bed sores
Worse than national average: Eight categories out of 30, including: computerized physician orders; clear discharge information; bloodstream infections; and falls and trauma.
Community Medical Center, Toms River:
Spring 2017: C
Fall 2016: C
Better than national average: Seventeen categories out of 30, including: physician staffing; leadership structure; bloodstream infections; and urinary tract infections.
Worse than national average: Thirteen categories out of 30, including: staff responsiveness; communication about medicine; wounds split open after surgery; and colorectal surgery infections,
Jersey Shore University Medical Center, Neptune:
Spring 2017: B
Fall 2016: C
Better than national average: Eighteen categories out of 30, including: physician staffing; care of ventilated patients; death from serious treatable complications after surgery; and intestinal bacteria.
Worse than national average: Twelve categories out of 30, including: providing clear discharge information; urinary tract infections; bed sores; and accidental cuts and tears from medical treatment.
Monmouth Medical Center, Long Branch
Spring 2017: A
Fall 2016: A
Better than national average: Twenty-four categories out of 30, including: physician staffing; nurse communication; urinary tract infections; and breathing failure after surgery.
Worse than national average: Six categories out of 30, including: staff responsiveness; postoperative pulmonary embolisms; wounds split open after surgery; and accidental cuts and tears from medical treatment.
Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus, Lakewood
Spring 2017: C
Fall 2016: C
Better than national average: Seventeen categories out of 29 (one wasn’t available), including: computerized physician orders; colorectal surgery infections; MRSA infections; and collapsed lung due to medical treatment.
Worse than national average: Twelve categories out of 29, including: doctor communication; communication about medicine; discharge communication; and urinary tract infections.
Ocean Medical Center, Brick
Spring 2017: A
Fall 2016: B
Better than national average: Twenty-two categories out of 30, including: physician staffing; falls and trauma; collapsed lung due to medical treatment; and accidental cuts or tears from medical treatment.
Worse than national average: Seven categories out of 30, including: computerized physician order entry; doctor communication; bloodstream infections; and MRSA infections.
Riverview Medical Center, Red Bank
Spring 2017: A
Fall 2016: A
Better than national average: Twenty-three categories out of 30, including: computerized physician order entries; nurse communication; colorectal surgery infections; and wounds split open after surgery.
Worse than national average: Seven categories out of 30, including: ICU physician staffing; providing clear discharge information; bed sores; and death from serious treatable complications after surgery.
Southern Ocean Medical Center, Stafford
Spring 2017: A
Fall 2016: C
Better than national average: Twenty-two categories out of 30, including: computerized physician order entries; bloodstream infections; colorectal surgery infections; and MRSA infections.
Worse than national average: Eight categories out of 30, including: ICU physician staffing; nurse communication; intestinal infections; and accidental cuts and tears from medical treatment.