Dignity Health Central Coast Hospitals Again Receive Top Patient Safety Ratings from the Leapfrog Group

Today, the Spring 2020 ratings were announced and all three facilities have been recognized with an 'A� for patient safety

CENTRAL COAST, CA – April 30, 2020 – Dignity Health hospitals, Arroyo Grande Community Hospital (AGCH), French Hospital Medical Center (FHMC), and Marian Regional Medical Center (MRMC), are pleased to share that they have again received “A” grades on the most recent rating report from The Leapfrog Group, which focuses on patient safety. These ratings are a testament to the hospitals ongoing commitment to providing the highest level of care and compassion to the patients they serve.

The Leapfrog Group, one of the nation’s leading hospital ratings organizations, awards hospitals based on safety, quality of care, and value metrics. The Leapfrog Group scores an “A” to hospitals that achieve the best hospital safety performance score, using a set of 28 national measures. The Leapfrog Group provides consumers ranked statistics and informative data for selecting a medical center. The premise of the group is to provide accessibility to the public while allowing medical facilities the opportunity to measure improvements.  Dignity Health Central Coast actively participates in the program, and the process offers a calculable opportunity for standardized advancements in the care, safety, and quality of our patients. 

“Now more than ever, we are incredibly proud of our health care teams for being recognized at this level, in the midst of the leadership and skill they have demonstrated during the COVID-19 pandemic,” says Gene Keller, MD, Dignity Health Central Coast Vice President for Quality. “Dignity Health Central Coast is proud to have again earned top ratings for patient safety from the Leapfrog Group, signifying our commitment to providing the highest level of quality and excellence for our patients.” 

All figures in the Hospital Safety Score are a combination of publicly available data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid and voluntarily submitted information by the hospital on the Leapfrog Hospital Survey. All data are used to generate a simple letter grade from A to F. The score includes twenty-eight safety measures. Ten of the measures are process and structural measures and represent fifty percent of the score. Eighteen of the measures are outcome measures and represent the final fifty percent of the score.

Leapfrog’s hospital safety scores are released twice a year and are calculated under the guidance of Leapfrog’s Blue Ribbon Expert Panel. The ratings represent a hospital’s overall capacity to keep patients safe from preventable harm. A full analysis of the data and methodology used is available at www.hospitalsafetyscore.org.      

Dignity Health Central Coast hospitals provide renowned care, advanced technologies, and compassion throughout their spectrum of services. Their commitment to excellence continues to distinguish them as leaders in the industry.

[Photo: Arroyo Grande Community Hospital Staff]

###

About Dignity Health Central Coast 
Dignity Health Central Coast is comprised of five award-winning hospitals, all recognized for their quality of care, safety and service, primary care offices, premier ambulatory surgery centers, technologically advanced imaging centers, outpatient services, and comprehensive home health services. Each hospital is supported by an active philanthropic Foundation to provide additional funding to support new programs and services, as well as to advance the community’s access to health care.  For more information, visit dignityhealth.org/central-coast.