Colorado Hospital Receives National Recognition for Outstanding Achievement in Patient Safety and Quality Care

DENVER, Dec. 2, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- The Leapfrog Group's annual class of top hospitals was announced today in Washington, DC at Leapfrog's 10th anniversary meeting and named St. Anthony Summit Medical Center, a Centura Health hospital, in Frisco, Colorado. St. Anthony Summit Medical Center was selected as one of only five rural hospitals nationwide.

The 2010 list includes 65 hospitals nationally; 53 urban, 5 rural, and 7 children's hospitals. The selection is based on the results of The Leapfrog Group's national survey that measures hospitals' performance in crucial areas of patient safety and quality.  It is the most complete picture available of a hospital's quality and safety.  

"Being named among the top hospitals in the country by Leapfrog is a tremendous honor. That recognition means that St. Anthony Summit Medical Center has demonstrated that it saves lives by delivering safe and high quality health care.   That's health care with true value; the kind of health care that we all want and expect from the health care delivery system every day. The Colorado Business Group on Health congratulates St. Anthony Summit Medical Center and its CEO, Paul Chodkowski, for their ongoing dedication to patient safety and quality as indicated by this award." Tammy Kirk, President, Colorado Business Group on Health

The 1200 hospitals that publicly report their performance via The Leapfrog Hospital Survey do so voluntarily.  "In a way, that makes all of them top hospitals," said Leah Binder, Leapfrog's CEO.  "It represents an enormous commitment by the institution to not only measure what they do against tough standards, but also to work for change and be transparent about it. And it's a signal to employers and other health care purchasers in their community that these hospitals care." In Colorado, the Colorado Business Group on Health (CBGH) mobilizes local employers and purchasers of health care to garner hospital participation in the national survey. CBGH has partnered with Leapfrog since the program's inception in 2001 as Colorado's Regional Roll-Out (RRO).

CBGH strives to achieve 100% Colorado hospital participation in The Leapfrog Hospital Survey and encourages consumers and employers to use the performance data from the Survey to make informed decisions about where to seek care. In addition, CBGH recognizes hospital participation and performance achievements throughout Colorado and works with hospitals on implementing the four leaps within their facilities.

The Hospital Survey focuses on four critical areas of patient safety: the use of computer physician order entry (CPOE) to prevent medication errors; standards for doing high-risk procedures such as heart surgery; protocols and policies to reduce medical errors and other safe practices recommended by the National Quality Forum; and adequate nurse and physician staffing. In addition, hospitals are measured on their progress in preventing infections and other hospital-acquired conditions and adopting policies on the handling of serious medical errors, among other things.

For a complete list of 2010 Leapfrog Top Hospitals, visit www.leapfroggroup.org.

The Leapfrog Group (www.leapfroggroup.org) uses the collective leverage of large purchasers of health care to initiate breakthrough improvements in the safety, quality, and affordability of health care for Americans. The Leapfrog Group was founded in November 2000 by the Business Roundtable, and is now independently operated with support from its members.

The Leapfrog Hospital Survey is the gold standard for comparing hospitals' performance on the national standards of safety, quality, and efficiency that are most relevant to consumers and purchasers of care. Hospitals that participate in The Leapfrog Hospital Survey achieve hospital-wide improvements that translate into millions of lives and dollars saved. Leapfrog's purchaser members use Survey results to inform their employees and purchasing strategies.

The Colorado Business Group on Health is a non-profit coalition representing large purchasers of health care services.  Since 1996, the CBGH together with Colorado health plans and purchasers, have been working on the "big picture" of health care quality.  CBGH is the local voice to affect change on the behalf of consumers and employers here in Colorado.  We engage the health care marketplace through leadership and active participation, driving positive changes to address quality and realize savings.  By working together, we can assure that consumers have the best possible information on health care quality.  Our mission is to advance the purchaser role to accelerate cost effective, high quality health care.  Our vision is to see our purchasers united, motivated, and focused on health care value and quality. For more information, please visit www.coloradohealthonline.org.

SOURCE Colorado Business Group on Health