Colquitt Regional Medical Center was awarded its 11th consecutive ‘A’ when The Leapfrog Group announced the fall 2019 Hospital Safety Grades. Receiving an ‘A’ signifies that Colquitt Regional has achieved the highest national standards in patient safety.
The Safety Grade assigns an ‘A’, ‘B’, ‘C’, ‘D’, or ‘F’ grade to all general hospitals across the country based on their performance in preventing medical errors, injuries, accidents, infections, and other harms to patients in their care.
According to The Leapfrog Group, out of the 2,600 hospitals surveyed, Colquitt Regional was among the 33 percent that earned an ‘A’ grade, followed by 25 percent that received a ‘B’, 34 percent that earned a ‘C,’ eight percent that received a ‘D’, and less than one percent that earned an ‘F.’ Colquitt Regional was also one of 19 hospitals in the state of Georgia to receive an ‘A’ grade.
“Patient safety is a top priority at Colquitt Regional and an integral part of our culture,” said Jim Matney, Colquitt Regional president and CEO. “We have worked strategically to build safe, sustainable practices throughout the organization that reinforce our commitment to provide the highest quality and safest care to our patients.”
Nurses currently use Lippincott, the most up-to-date, evidence-based care procedures to ensure patient safety is at the forefront of every interaction. There have also been in-house initiatives introduced to promote awareness and/or prevention of common harms and illnesses such as falls, sepsis, and strokes, among others.
In an effort to gain feedback that is used to further enhance the safety of all patients, Colquitt Regional encourages all patients and families to be active participants during their visit by doing bedside shift reporting.
Developed under the guidance of a national Expert Panel, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses 28 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign grades to U.S. acute-care hospitals twice per year. The Hospital Safety Grade’s methodology is peer-reviewed and fully transparent, and the results are free to the public.
Among the 28 measures used to evaluate each hospital, Colquitt Regional earned a perfect score in the following categories: handwashing, effective leadership to prevent errors, staff working together to prevent errors, tracking and reducing risks to patients, doctors ordering medications through a computer, enough qualified nurses, infection in the blood, air or gas bubble in the blood, and surgical site infection after colon surgery.
Colquitt Regional also scored 92 percent or higher in the categories of responsiveness of hospital staff (92 percent), communication with nurses (93 percent), communication about discharge (94 percent), and communication with doctors (95 percent).
“‘A’ hospitals show us their leadership protecting patients from preventable medical harm and error,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “It takes genuine commitment at every level – from clinicians to administrators to the board of directors – and we congratulate the teams who have worked so hard to earn this A.”
It was announced that Colquitt Regional was awarded its ‘A’ grade on Nov. 7, when Leapfrog announced grades for the fall 2019 update. To see Colquitt Regional’s full grade details and to view the scores of other hospitals in the region, visit hospitalsafetygrade.org.
“Receiving straight A’s since 2014 is an extraordinary honor for Colquitt Regional,” said Maureen A. Yearta, Ed.D., Hospital Authority Chairman. “Each one of our exceptional staff members plays a vital role in maintaining a safe environment for our patients. Having The Leapfrog Group recognize their dedication for the eleventh consecutive time is extremely rewarding.”
Colquitt Regional is a 99-bed teaching hospital located in Moultrie, Georgia. With over 90 providers, more than 30 specialties and 1,350 employees, Colquitt Regional is committed to providing exceptional healthcare that exceeds expectations for Colquitt County and the surrounding areas.
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