UH Parma Scores Top Safety Grade From Leapfrog Group

University Hospitals Parma Medical Center received an “A” Hospital Safety Grade from The Leapfrog Group, a national nonprofit upholding the standard of patient safety in hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers. This national distinction celebrates UH Parma Medical Center s achievements in prioritizing patient safety by protecting patients from preventable harm and errors. The new grades reflect performance primarily during the height of the pandemic.

“Most hospitals took a decade-long step back during the pandemic era in terms of patient experience and quality, and patient perception followed,” said James Hill, MD, Chief Operating Officer of UH Parma Medical Center. “The COVID-19 pandemic in some ways may have been our finest hour, because UH Parma had put the people and processes in place to be hyper-focused on Zero Harm with proactive measures to benefit patients. This is a story we are excited to tell. It’s the power of intentional change.”

Leapfrog’s publicly available hospital grades are an important tool that empowers patients, Dr. Hill added. UH Parma closely monitors quality measures like hospital-acquired infections and readmission rates. All caregivers, including nurses and physicians, are encouraged to actively advocate for their patients, which leads to a culture of shared responsibility and accountability.

The Leapfrog Group, an independent national watchdog organization, assigns an “A,” “B,” “C,” “D” or “F” grade to general hospitals across the country based on over 30 national performance measures reflecting errors, accidents, injuries and infections, as well as systems hospitals have in place to prevent harm.

“This new update of Hospital Safety Grades shows that, at the national level, we saw deterioration in patient safety with the pandemic,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “But this hospital received an ‘A’ despite those challenges. I congratulate all the leaders, staff, volunteers and clinicians who together made that possible.”

The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade is the only hospital ratings program based exclusively on hospital prevention of medical errors and harm to patients. The grading system is peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public. Grades are updated twice annually, in the fall and spring.

To see UH Parma Medical Center’s full grade details and to access patient tips for staying safe in the hospital, visit HospitalSafetyGrade.org and follow The Leapfrog Group on Twitter, Facebook and via its newsletter.