Virginia Mason has made The Leapfrog Group's annual list of Top Hospitals in the US for the ninth consecutive year. It is the only hospital in the country to be named a Top Hospital every year since the recognition programme was launched in 2006.
In addition, Virginia Mason is the only hospital in Washington state to receive the 2014 Top Hospital award for quality and safety.
“The Leapfrog Group’s methodology sets a high standard for identifying hospitals that are truly committed to providing the highest quality and safest care,” said Virginia Mason Chairman and CEO Gary S. Kaplan, MD. “The Top Hospital award acknowledges our organisation’s extraordinary achievements and our team members’ focus on creating a perfect patient experience.”
An elite distinction earned by hospitals through the Leapfrog Hospital Survey, the Top Hospital award is given to less than seven percent of all eligible hospitals across the US.
“Leapfrog’s Top Hospital award is widely acknowledged as one of the most prestigious distinctions any hospital can achieve in the United States,” according to Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “It recognises institutions for their excellence in quality of care and patient safety, as well as their commitment to transparency."
Leapfrog is an employer-based coalition that represents large purchasers of healthcare advocating for improved transparency, quality and safety. Its members include The Boeing Co., AARP, Verizon, Federal Express, and United Parcel Service.
“By achieving Top Hospital status, Virginia Mason has proven it’s a premier institution and deserves to be recognised for its dedication to the families and patients,” Binder added.
Virginia Mason is one of 94 Top Hospitals in 27 states being recognised this year. The Top Rural Hospital award is one of the few distinctions made available for rural and critical access hospitals, and this year rural hospitals excelled, with 25 making the list. They are joined by 60 urban and nine children’s hospitals.
Other highlights of Leapfrog's 2014 annual awards include Massachusetts doubling its number of Top Hospitals with a total of 10 and for the first time, hospitals in Alabama, Kentucky and Rhode Island receiving the award.
The selection is based on results of The Leapfrog Group’s annual survey of hospitals’ performances on patient safety and quality indicators. The survey focuses on three critical areas of hospital care: how patients fare, resource use and management structures established to prevent errors.
“The results of the Leapfrog Hospital Survey are used in high-stakes situations like national pay-for-performance programmes – it’s crucial information used by purchasers, health plans and consumers to assess the quality and safety of institutions nationwide," Binder noted. "That’s why we’ll continue our push for hospitals to commit to transparency, and that means participating in and fully completing the survey.”
Demonstrating the highest standards of care, Top Hospitals have lower infection rates, higher survival rates for high-risk procedures, decreased length of stay and fewer readmissions. Amongst the metrics included in the Leapfrog Hospital Survey are maternity care, evidence of a hospital’s ability to prevent medication errors, and appropriate staffing to ensure quality of care.
The full list of institutions honoured as a 2014 Top Hospital is available at: www.leapfroggroup.org/tophospitals
Source: Virginia Mason Medical Center/The Leapfrog Group
Image Credit: The Leapfrog Group
In addition, Virginia Mason is the only hospital in Washington state to receive the 2014 Top Hospital award for quality and safety.
“The Leapfrog Group’s methodology sets a high standard for identifying hospitals that are truly committed to providing the highest quality and safest care,” said Virginia Mason Chairman and CEO Gary S. Kaplan, MD. “The Top Hospital award acknowledges our organisation’s extraordinary achievements and our team members’ focus on creating a perfect patient experience.”
An elite distinction earned by hospitals through the Leapfrog Hospital Survey, the Top Hospital award is given to less than seven percent of all eligible hospitals across the US.
“Leapfrog’s Top Hospital award is widely acknowledged as one of the most prestigious distinctions any hospital can achieve in the United States,” according to Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “It recognises institutions for their excellence in quality of care and patient safety, as well as their commitment to transparency."
Leapfrog is an employer-based coalition that represents large purchasers of healthcare advocating for improved transparency, quality and safety. Its members include The Boeing Co., AARP, Verizon, Federal Express, and United Parcel Service.
“By achieving Top Hospital status, Virginia Mason has proven it’s a premier institution and deserves to be recognised for its dedication to the families and patients,” Binder added.
Virginia Mason is one of 94 Top Hospitals in 27 states being recognised this year. The Top Rural Hospital award is one of the few distinctions made available for rural and critical access hospitals, and this year rural hospitals excelled, with 25 making the list. They are joined by 60 urban and nine children’s hospitals.
Other highlights of Leapfrog's 2014 annual awards include Massachusetts doubling its number of Top Hospitals with a total of 10 and for the first time, hospitals in Alabama, Kentucky and Rhode Island receiving the award.
The selection is based on results of The Leapfrog Group’s annual survey of hospitals’ performances on patient safety and quality indicators. The survey focuses on three critical areas of hospital care: how patients fare, resource use and management structures established to prevent errors.
“The results of the Leapfrog Hospital Survey are used in high-stakes situations like national pay-for-performance programmes – it’s crucial information used by purchasers, health plans and consumers to assess the quality and safety of institutions nationwide," Binder noted. "That’s why we’ll continue our push for hospitals to commit to transparency, and that means participating in and fully completing the survey.”
Demonstrating the highest standards of care, Top Hospitals have lower infection rates, higher survival rates for high-risk procedures, decreased length of stay and fewer readmissions. Amongst the metrics included in the Leapfrog Hospital Survey are maternity care, evidence of a hospital’s ability to prevent medication errors, and appropriate staffing to ensure quality of care.
The full list of institutions honoured as a 2014 Top Hospital is available at: www.leapfroggroup.org/tophospitals
Source: Virginia Mason Medical Center/The Leapfrog Group
Image Credit: The Leapfrog Group
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Errors, patient safety, Quality of Care, Virginia Mason Hospital, Leapfrog, hospital survey
Virginia Mason has made The Leapfrog Group's annual list of Top Hospitals in the US for the ninth consecutive year. It is the only hospital in the country...
