No Tampa Bay region hospitals received a failing grade for patient safety but several were given C ratings in rankings released Thursday by the independent nonprofit Leapfrog.<\/p>\n
Tampa General Hospital, the region\u2019s only Level I trauma center, earned its seventh straight C grade.<\/p>\n
Four Tampa Bay area HCA hospitals also received C ratings: HCA Florida South Shore in Sun City Center, HCA Florida Northside in St. Petersburg, HCA Florida Largo and HCA Florida Bayonet Point in Hudson. Tampa General\u2019s regional hospitals in Brooksville and Spring Hill were also rated C.<\/p>\n
Eleven of 12 BayCare hospitals that were rated received A grades, including its flagship Tampa hospital St. Joseph\u2019s and St. Anthony\u2019s Hospital in St. Petersburg. South Florida Baptist Hospital in Plant City, which had overall blood and urinary tract infections above the national average, received a B.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis achievement demonstrates what\u2019s possible when every team member, physician and advanced practice provider takes ownership of safety and is a testament to our shared focus on zero harm,\u201d said Dr. Laura Arline, BayCare\u2019s chief quality officer, in a news release.<\/p>\n
Five Tampa Bay region AdventHealth hospitals were rated A, including ones in Dade City, Carrollwood and Wesley Chapel. AdventHealth Tampa bounced back from its C grade in the spring to earn a B. Its rate of sepsis infections after surgery was below the national average.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen patients walk through our doors, they can trust that our teams are focused on preventing errors, maintaining the highest safety standards and delivering compassionate care that helps them heal and feel whole,\u201d said Raj Wadhawan, chief clinical officer of the AdventHealth West Florida Division in an email.<\/p>\n
Overall Florida ranked 15th in the nation with 38% of its hospitals earning an A grade. The state ranked 10th in the fall of 2022.<\/p>\n
Leapfrog, an independent nonprofit, releases safety grades twice on year on more than 3,000 hospitals across the U.S. The grades are determined by tracking preventable medical errors, infections and injuries.<\/p>\n
It began ranking hospitals a decade ago in an effort to reduce deaths from hospital errors and injuries by publicly recognizing safety and exposing harm. The rankings are based on more than 30 performance measures, including data hospitals report to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, billing information and patient satisfaction surveys. Its ranking is based on four years of data.<\/p>\n
Tampa General\u2019s scorecard shows that rates of sepsis, blood leakage, kidney injuries after surgeries and patient falls were above the national average.<\/p>\n
The hospital in 2022 announced it was making efforts to raise its grade.<\/p>\n
That included a task force to focus on lowering hospital infections, the use of technology to identify patients at higher risk of infections and an increased focus on prevention among medical staffers. It also did a full redesign of its critical care division.<\/p>\n
Leapfrog\u2019s four-year grading formula means those improvements will take time to be reflected in grades that currently are still influenced by performance during the pandemic when many hospitals were inundated with patients during surges in COVID-19 infections.<\/p>\n
Tampa General officials have also repeatedly said they see more value in ratings produced by Vizient, which compares it to hospitals of similar size and complexity, including NYU Langone, Mass General Brigham and Vanderbilt University.<\/p>\n