Leapfrog safety grades come out

VENICE — Sarasota Memorial Hospital-Venice earned an “A” safety grade from The Leapfrog Group in its first period of eligibility.

A hospital has to be open for two years to be included in Leapfrog’s ratings. SMH-Venice opened in November 2021.

The grades, released Wednesday, show the other three Sarasota County hospitals — Sarasota Memorial Hospital-Sarasota, HCA Florida Sarasota Doctors Hospital and HCA Florida Englewood Hospital — also received an “A,” as they have since at least 2016.

The three hospitals in Charlotte County — HCA Florida Fawcett Hospital, ShorePoint Health Port Charlotte and ShorePoint Health Punta Gorda — all got a “C” for at least the third consecutive report.

DeSoto Memorial Hospital, in Arcadia, which doesn’t participate in the semiannual survey by Leapfrog, was rated a “D,” its first grade since a “B” in the fall of 2022.

“The assessment of a hospital’s safety by Leapfrog scores may not offer a comprehensive view, particularly disadvantaging smaller hospitals due to data exclusion based on low patient volumes,” DMH Public Information Officer Sarah A. Hipp said via email, noting the facility is rated four stars out of five by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

For the first time, the Leapfrog survey includes rankings of metropolitan areas with a population of at least 500,000 people. The North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton area ranks No. 13 nationally in the percentage of A-rated hospitals, 57.1%, tied with Jacksonville and Harrisburg-Carlisle, Pennsylvania.

BY FACILITY

SMH-Venice was rated above average in 16 of Leapfrog’s 32 measures, average in 11 and below average in four: Clostridium difficile infections, surgical wounds splitting open, falls causing broken hips, and collapsed lungs. Data in one weren’t available.

“I am so proud of the Venice team for the outstanding care they have provided to our patients and community,” Venice Campus President Sharon Roush said in a news release.

SMH-Sarasota was rated above average in 18 measures, average in 13 and below average in only one: blood leakage during surgery.

It has earned an “A” rating in every Leapfrog survey since it started participating in 2016.

HCA Doctors Hospital was rated above average in 18 measures, average in 10 and below average in one: communications about discharge. Leapfrog indicates the facility declined to respond in three categories: staff working together to prevent errors, effective leadership to prevent errors and nursing and bedside care for patients.

The hospital has received an “A” rating for 19 straight surveys.

“At HCA Florida Sarasota Doctors Hospital, our commitment to patient safety is part of our culture and what we do for each patient, every day,” CEO Bob Meade said via email.

HCA Englewood was rated above average in 11 measures, average in 14 and below average in three, with data not available for four. It declined to report data regarding staff working together to prevent errors, effective leadership to prevent errors and nursing and bedside care for patients, according to Leapfrog.

Its below-average ratings were for collapsed lungs, communications about medications and communications about discharge.

The hospital has received 24 consecutive “A” grades, starting with the second-ever Leapfrog survey. But it has “paused” its participation because, according to Communications and Community Engagement Director Julie Beatty, “Leapfrog continues to move away from evidence-based metrics and we believe outcomes are the best measure of quality.”

“Given that HCA Florida Englewood Hospital has historically been rated highly by Leapfrog, … the decision to pause our participation was a difficult one,” she said via email. “But we remain committed to clinical excellence in all areas of our hospital, including patient safety.”

HCA Fawcett was rated above average in 16 measures, average in six and below average in seven, with data not reported for staff working together to prevent errors, effective leadership to prevent errors and nursing and bedside care for patients.

Below-average marks were for MRSA infections; serious breathing problems; communications about medicines and about discharge; communications with doctors and with nurses; and the responsiveness of staff.

The hospital has received three straight “C” grades since being rated a “B” in both 2022 surveys.

It didn’t respond to a request for comment.

ShorePoint Health Port Charlotte was rated above average in 12 measures, average in six and below average in 13, with no data in one.

Below-average marks were for sepsis after surgery; surgical wounds splitting; death from serious treatable complications; blood leakage; dangerous bed sores; falls causing broken hips; dangerous blood clots; communications about medicine and about discharge; nursing and bedside care for patients; communications with doctors and with nurses; and the responsiveness of staff.

The hospital didn’t respond to a request for comment.

It has had a “C” grade in three consecutive surveys following a “B” in the fall of 2022.

ShorePoint Health Punta Gorda was rated above average in 11 measures, average in four and below average in 14, with data not available in three.

Its below-average marks were for surgical wounds splitting open; serious breathing problems; accidental cuts and tears; harmful events; falls and injuries; falls causing broken hips; dangerous blood clots; communications about medicine and about discharge; nursing and bedside care for patients; specially trained ICU doctors; communications with doctors and with nurses; and the responsiveness of staff.

ShorePoint didn’t respond to a request for comment.

It has received a “C” in at least seven straight surveys.

DeSoto Memorial was rated above average in four measures, average in seven and below average in nine, with data not available in nine.

It declined to respond in three categories, according to Leapfrog: staff working together to prevent errors, effective leadership to prevent errors and nursing and bedside care for patients.

“Despite achieving zero surgical site infections within a year, these achievements are not factored into the scoring due to our low census,” Hipp said.

The “gold standard” for evaluating hospital safety is CMS scores because they’re based on a wider set of data, she said, including “performance in various quality domains such as managing heart attacks, pneumonia, readmission rates and overall safety of care.”

For more information, visit HospitalSafetyGrade.org.