Mercy Joplin Receives Only A Grade for Patient Safety in Region

Independent, third-party organization applauds Mercy's quality

(Joplin, MO) – For the 13th consecutive time, Mercy Hospital Joplin has received an ‘A’ Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade for achievements in protecting patients from harm and errors in the hospital. Mercy is the only hospital in the Southwest Missouri, Southeast Kansas and Northeast Oklahoma areas to receive an A grade.

“Patient safety matters, it’s our number one job to keep our patients safe,” said Jeremy Drinkwitz, president of Mercy Hospital Joplin. “We want to heal their illness or take care of the reasons they’re in the hospital and not cause any more harm. So it’s important for us to remember that, our co-workers always do a great job of that, and I think them helping us earn straight As since 2015 proves that. This award is validation for all the good work and effort we do to keep our patients safe.”

The Leapfrog Group, an independent, national watchdog organization, assigns letter grades to hospitals across the country based on more than 30 performance measures reflecting errors, injuries, accidents and infections, as well as the systems hospitals have in place to prevent harm to their patients.

In Missouri, Mercy Hospital Joplin was one of only 21 hospitals throughout the state to earn an A grade from Leapfrog in the Fall 2021 grades.

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 at hospitalsafetygrade.org. Grades are updated twice annually, in the fall and spring.

“An ‘A’ Safety Grade is a tremendous achievement, of which this community should be extremely proud,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “I thank the leadership and workforce of Mercy Hospital Joplin for its commitment to prioritizing patients and their safety, especially during these trying times.”

To see Mercy Hospital Joplin’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 and Facebook.

About The Leapfrog Group:

Founded in 2000 by large employers and other purchasers, The Leapfrog Group is a national nonprofit organization driving a movement for giant leaps forward in the quality and safety of American health care. The flagship Leapfrog Hospital Survey and new Leapfrog Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC) Survey collect and transparently report hospital and ASC performance, empowering purchasers to find the highest-value care and giving consumers the lifesaving information they need to make informed decisions. The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, Leapfrog’s other main initiative, assigns letter grades to hospitals based on their record of patient safety, helping consumers protect themselves and their families from errors, injuries, accidents, and infections.

About Mercy: 

Mercy, named one of the top five large U.S. health systems for four consecutive years by IBM Watson Health, serves millions annually. Mercy is one of the nation’s most highly integrated, multi-state health care systems, including more than 40 acute care, managed and specialty (heart, children’s, orthopedic and rehab) hospitals, convenient urgent care locations, imaging centers and pharmacies. Mercy has 900 physician practices and outpatient facilities, more than 4,000 Mercy Clinic physicians and advanced practitioners and 40,000-plus co-workers serving patients and families across Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma. Mercy also has clinics, outpatient services and outreach ministries in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. In addition, Mercy’s IT division, Mercy Technology Services, and Mercy Virtual commercially serve providers and patients from coast to coast.

Reference:

Nancy Corbett
Mercy
405.615.6674
nancy.corbett@mercy.net 

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