Northern Hospital of Surry County has once again been recognized for earning its sixth consecutive grade A by the independent national patient safety watchdog The Leapfrog Group, making it the third straight year of top scores. The Hospital Safety Scores, which assign A, B, C, D and F letter grades to hospitals nationwide and provide the most complete picture of patient safety in the U.S. health care system, were announced recently by The Leapfrog Group. Northern Hospital is one of 823 hospitals to receive an A, ranking among the safest hospitals in the United States. In North Carolina, 43 out of 78 scored hospitals received an A.
“We are so proud of the hard work of our dedicated clinical and quality teams who have consistently earned this top safety score. Patient safety is priority here at Northern and our staff take pride in caring for our patients and ensuring their safety is number one. It’s an honor to receive this excellent rating for 6 consecutive reporting periods and to be one of only 43 North Carolina hospitals receiving an A,” said Robin Hodgin, Vice President of Patient Care Services and Chief Nursing Officer.
“Hospitals that earn top marks nationally in the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, ‘have achieved the highest safety standards in the country,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “That takes commitment from every member of the hospital staff, who all deserve thanks and congratulations when their hospitals achieve an ‘A’ Safety Grade.”
Developed under the guidance of an Expert Panel, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses 30 measures (up from 28 from this time last year) of publicly available hospital safety data to assign A, B, C, D and F grades to more than 2,600 U.S. hospitals twice per year. It is calculated by top patient safety experts, peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public. Visit HospitalSafetyGrade.org for more information on hospital scorings.
About Northern Hospital
Northern Hospital of Surry County, a 133-bed hospital, is an independently operated, award winning facility with a number of outpatient service locations including physician specialists, pharmacy, and fitness center. Northern Medical Group is the hospital’s network of primary care and specialty providers delivering a comprehensive array of services to meet the needs of the community. Northern Hospital is a certified Stroke Center of Excellence and is recognized for distinction in patient safety, receiving consistent honors of a Grade “A” Hospital Safety Score from The Leapfrog Group. The state-of-the art Surgery Center houses a wide range of inpatient and outpatient procedures including orthopedics, ENT, gynecology, gastroenterology, urological, surgeries of the eye, and other general surgeries. Founded in 1957, Northern Hospital is located in Mount Airy, North Carolina and serves the northwest Piedmont region of NC and neighboring counties in southwest Virginia. For more information visit www.northernhospital.com.
About The Leapfrog Group
Founded in 2000 by large employers and other purchasers, The Leapfrog Group is a national nonprofit organization driving a movement for giant leaps forward in the quality and safety of American health care. The flagship Leapfrog Hospital Survey collects and transparently reports hospital performance, empowering purchasers to find the highest-value care and giving consumers the lifesaving information they need to make informed decisions. The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, Leapfrog’s other main initiative, assigns letter grades to hospitals based on their record of patient safety, helping consumers protect themselves and their families from errors, injuries, accidents, and infections.
