19 Kaiser Permanente Hospitals Named 'Top Hospitals' by Leapfrog Group

Of the 55 top urban medical centers in the nation, more than a third are run by Kaiser Permanente

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Dec 03, 2013, 01:00 ET

OAKLAND, Calif., Dec. 3, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Nineteen Kaiser Permanente hospitals — 10 in Northern California and nine in Southern California — have been named 2013 "Top Hospitals" by The Leapfrog Group, an honor that rewards medical centers for their outstanding success in areas such as reducing infection rates, safety practices, mortality rates for common procedures and measures of efficiency.

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The 19 Kaiser Permanente hospitals represent approximately one out of every three on Leapfrog's list of urban "Top Hospitals." Out of nearly 1,100 urban hospitals that completed the Leapfrog survey and were considered for the award, only 55 were named "Top Hospitals."

In California, only 23 hospitals were named "Top Hospitals." Kaiser Permanente's 19 "Top Hospitals" make up 83 percent of the California list.

"This is a time of dramatic change in American health care and Kaiser Permanente's outstanding performance in The Leapfrog Group's Top Hospital ratings reflects our continued commitment to quality," said Bernard J. Tyson, chief executive officer of Kaiser Permanente. "Our 9.1 million members are able to achieve the best health outcomes because of our Kaiser Permanente physicians, nurses and care teams who excel in proactive prevention of illness, early detection of disease, and better treatment of chronic conditions."

KAISER PERMANENTE TOP HOSPITALS

Kaiser Permanente Antioch Medical Center
Kaiser Permanente Downey Medical Center
Kaiser Permanente Fontana Medical Center
Kaiser Permanente Fresno Medical Center
Kaiser Permanente Irvine Medical Center
Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Medical Center
Kaiser Permanente Oakland Medical Center
Kaiser Permanente Ontario Medical Center
Kaiser Permanente Panorama City Medical Center
Kaiser Permanente Richmond Medical Center
Kaiser Permanente Riverside Medical Center
Kaiser Permanente Roseville Medical Center
Kaiser Permanente San Diego Medical Center
Kaiser Permanente San Jose Medical Center
Kaiser Permanente Santa Clara Medical Center
Kaiser Permanente South San Francisco Medical Center
Kaiser Permanente Vacaville Medical Center
Kaiser Permanente Walnut Creek Medical Center
Kaiser Permanente Woodland Hills Medical Center

To be included among Leapfrog's "Top Hospitals," medical centers, among other criteria, must have fulfilled stringent performance standards for high-risk procedures (such as heart bypass surgery) and fully met Leapfrog's standards for implementing computer physician order entry systems.

"Kaiser Permanente is consistently receiving the highest accolades for quality and safety because our care teams work together within our unique system of coordinated care, and are dedicated to helping each of our members to live well and thrive," said Amy Compton-Phillips, MD, associate executive director of Quality, Kaiser Permanente. "Having experts available from every specialty in the hospital and utilizing the most advanced electronic medical record allows physicians to provide their patients rapid, cutting-edge diagnosis and treatment."

The "Top Hospitals" honor is the most recent in a string of accolades given to Kaiser Permanente hospitals and health plans. In the past few months:

In the most recent Leapfrog Hospital Safety Score report, all 36 Kaiser Permanente medical centers included in the report received "A" grades.
Kaiser Permanente's Medicare health plans received a 5-star rating, the highest ranking possible, from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services for 2014 in all seven of its geographical regions.
Kaiser Permanente was rated by the National Committee for Quality Assurance as having the top five Medicare health plans in the nation.

The Leapfrog Group is a coalition of public and private purchasers of employee health coverage. It is a voluntary reporting program that recognizes and rewards U.S. health care groups for safety, quality and customer value. The questions Leapfrog asks on its survey are consistent with measures used by The Joint Commission, National Quality Forum and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

The Leapfrog Group also recognized 22 top rural hospitals and the top 13 children's hospitals.

View the complete list of the 2013 Leapfrog "Top Hospitals," or visit The Leapfrog Group's website at www.leapfroggroup.org.

About Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We are recognized as one of America's leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Founded in 1945, our mission is to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve 9.1 million members in eight states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal physicians, specialists and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the-art care delivery and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education and the support of community health. For more information, go to: kp.org/share.

CONTACT
Mark Camps
[email protected]
510-529-1854

SOURCE Kaiser Permanente