Keck Hospital of USC is one of 832 hospitals nationwide to receive an “A” grade from the Leapfrog Group, a national patient safety watchdog, during the Fall 2017 release of the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade.

Developed under the guidance of an expert panel, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses 30 measures of publicly available patient safety data to determine whether a hospital is assigned an A, B, C, D or F grade. Data included in the calculations are derived from national performance measures from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other national organizations.

“We are delighted to receive another ‘A’ Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade,” said Rod Hanners, COO of Keck Medicine of USC and CEO of Keck Medical Center of USC. “This achievement is the result of continuous improvements at Keck Hospital to provide the highest level of care to our patients, many of whom have complex medical issues.”

Keck Hospital’s “A” grade reflects its strict adherence to comprehensive quality and safety programs, as well as a number of successful initiatives aimed at preventing patient harm and achieving high reliability. Among the hospital’s quality and safety initiatives is a physician-led team that is focused on everything from infection prevention strategies to clinical care improvements. The hospital also has a smart sepsis alert system that ensures compliance with evidence-based sepsis care and a program for reducing hospital-acquired venous thromboembolism.

“Patient safety and quality improvement are top priorities in health care, and at Keck Hospital, we are always challenging ourselves to find new opportunities to elevate care and eliminate patient harm,” said Stephanie Hall, MD, chief medical officer of Keck Medicine of USC. “All of our teams have made tremendous strides in quality and safety, and I am proud of what of they have accomplished.”

To see Keck Hospital’s detailed review, visit www.hospitalsafetygrade.org.

— Erica Rheinschild