NEW BEDFORD, Mass. – Southcoast Health has been recognized for its dedication to patient safety by being awarded an ‘A’ grade in the April 2016 Hospital Safety Score, which rates how well hospitals protect patients from preventable medical errors, injuries and infections within the hospital. Southcoast Health’s three hospitals – St. Luke’s Hospital in New Bedford, Charlton Memorial Hospital in Fall River and Tobey Hospital in Wareham – were each recognized with the top rating.

“Patient safety is paramount to everyone at Southcoast Health,” said Keith Hovan, President & CEO of Southcoast Health. “When patients are admitted to a Southcoast hospital, they and their families can be confident that we have the personnel, training and systems in place to maintain the highest level of clinical care and patient safety.”

The Hospital Safety Score is compiled under the guidance of patient safety experts and administered by The Leapfrog Group, a national, independent nonprofit. The first and only hospital safety rating to be peer-reviewed in the Journal of Patient Safety, the Hospital Safety Score is free to the public and designed to give consumers information they can use to protect themselves and their families when facing a hospital stay.

“Avoidable deaths in hospitals should be the number one concern of our health care leaders. Hospitals that earn an ‘A’ from Leapfrog are leaders in saving lives, and we commend them and urge their continued vigilance,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group.

Developed under the guidance of Leapfrog’s Blue Ribbon Expert Panel, the Hospital Safety Score uses 30 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign A, B, C, D and F grades to more than 2,500 U.S. hospitals twice per year. It is calculated by top patient safety experts, peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public. For the first time, the Hospital Safety Score includes five measures of patient-reported experience with the hospital as well as two of the most common infections, C.diff and MRSA.

To see the full scores for Southcoast Health’s three hospitals, and to access consumer-friendly tips for patients and loved ones visiting the hospital, visit www.hospitalsafetyscore.org or follow The Hospital Safety Score on Twitter or Facebook. Consumers can also download the free Hospital Safety Score mobile app for Apple and Android devices.

Earlier this month, Southcoast Health also achieved the Healthgrades 2016 Patient Safety Excellence Award, placing it among the top 10 percent of hospitals in the nation for its excellent performance.

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