FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 28, 2017
CONTACT:
Colleen Leonard Leyden; Director Corporate Marketing and Public Relations
610-431-5699
colleen.leyden@uphs.upenn.edu
Chester County Hospital receives fourth consecutive “A” grade from The Leapfrog Group
Chester County Hospital’s journey from excellent to elite has hit another milestone. The hospital has received its fourth consecutive “A” grade from The LeapFrog Group. Chester County Hospital also exceeded expectations for heart failure and sepsis care and maintained a low-cost structure for patients, according to the 2016 Hospital Performance Report published by the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council (PHC4).
In addition, the hospital has been named one of the five best hospitals in the region by U.S. News and World Report and was named as one of the top 100 hospitals in the country by Truven Health Analytics. “Repeated high marks and improved ratings from these organizations year after year quantify the hospital’s goal of going beyond excellent patient care to elite patient care,” explained Michael J. Duncan, president and CEO.
The Leapfrog Group, a nonprofit organization committed to driving quality, safety and transparency in the U.S. health care system, releases state rankings bi-annually. “It takes consistent, unwavering dedication to patients to achieve the highest standards of patient safety. An ‘A’ Safety Grade recognizes hospitals for this accomplishment,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group
In Pennsylvania, only 38 hospitals received an A grade. The score reflects commitment to reducing errors, infections and accidents that can harm patients. “It is a tribute to our care teams, medical staff and nurses who put patient safety at the forefront of care,” Duncan, said.
This grade comes on the heels of U.S. News and World Report recognizing Chester County Hospital as fifth in the Philadelphia region and ninth in Pennsylvania, making it the highest rated hospital in Chester County. “We pay attention to these external rankings to ensure our quality is moving us to provide superior health care services to our patients,” Duncan added. U.S. News rankings recognize hospitals for outstanding quality, expertise, technology and experience.
This month, PHC4 also released its 2016 Hospital Performance Report. The report highlighted Chester County Hospital as having significantly lower rates for readmission and mortality for both heart failure and sepsis. It also emphasized the hospital’s commitment to low costs to the patient while maintaining high quality care.
“These rankings and reports reinforce our promise to be the leading provider of care in the region and a national model for quality, service excellence and fiscal stewardship,” Duncan states.
The Leapfrog Group hospital Safety Grade uses 30 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign A, B, C, D and F grades to more than 2,600 U.S. hospitals. It is calculated by top patient safety experts, peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public. To see the full report, visit www.hospitalsafetygrade.org.
PHC4 is an independent state agency charged with collecting, analyzing and reporting information that can be used to improve the quality and restrain the cost of health care in Pennsylvania. Copies of the 2016 Hospital Performance are free and available from PHC4’s website at www.phc4.org.