Hospitals earn ‘A’ grade for patient safety
An independent hospital watchdog group recently gave an “A” grade for patient safety to two Memorial Hermann hospitals.
Memorial Hermann Health System’s hospitals in Katy and Sugar Land were among more than 2,500 general hospitals in the United States graded by The Leapfrog Group. The nonprofit organization works to bring awareness of safety issues and to improve transparency in the U.S. hospital system.
According to the nonprofit, as many as 440,000 people die each year from hospital errors, injuries, accidents and infections. An estimated 1 out of every 25 patients develops an infection while in a hospital. The Leapfrog Group’s Hospital Safety Score, released Oct. 28, was in recognition of the hospitals’ low patient infection rates and initiatives to prevent mistakes and ensure communication between hospital staff, patients and their families.
The two local hospitals were among 773 hospitals nationwide to receive an A grade from the organization. The Katy and Sugar Land hospitals were among nine of the Memorial Hermann Health System’s hospitals to receive the grade.
“This recognition is a great acknowledgment of the commitment to patient safety and quality demonstrated daily at all Memorial Hermann hospitals by our clinical staff and employees,” said Dan Wolterman, president/CEO of Memorial Hermann, in a news release. “Our commitment to being a High Reliability Organization is the right thing to do for our patients who are entrusted into our care. This award affirms and validates the trust those families placed in us to care for their loved ones.”
Developed under the guidance of Leapfrog’s Blue Ribbon Expert Panel, the organization’s Hospital Safety Score uses 28 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to produce a single A,B, C, D or F score — representing a hospital’s overall capacity to keep patients safe from preventable harm. On average, national hospital safety performance improved on eight of the 28 measures, but average performance declined on six measures, according to The Leapfrog Group.
However, the group’s Fall 2015 report indicated some encouraging results in that hospitals taking steps to make safety a priority are either consistently maintaining an A score or are raising a lower score to an A over time. Since the launch of the Hospital Safety Score in 2012, 133 hospitals have earned an “A” in each of the twice-annual updates of the score — approximately 5 percent of all graded hospitals.
“Taking a deeper look at the 133 ‘Straight A’ hospitals reveals a diverse group, similar only in their consistent commitment to patient safety,” said Leah Binder, president/CEO of The Leapfrog Group, in a news release announcing the release of the Fall 2015 report. “Hospitals from across the country, with 100 beds to over 750 beds, nonprofit and for-profit alike received this top honor. No matter how large or small, no matter what kind of community they serve, all hospitals have the potential to give their patients this high level of safe care.”
She said Memorial Hermann’s A grade was a reminder for the hospital system’s clinicians and staff to put patient safety above all else. Binder said “families, neighbors, colleagues and friends deserve a hospital that will pull out all the stops to keep them safe,” and urged Memorial Hermann and all other A-graded hospitals to preserve and renew the “commitment to safety year after year.”
The Leapfrog Group’s Hospital Safety Score is the only hospital safety rating to be peer-reviewed in the Journal of Patient Safety. It is free to the public and designed to give consumers the information they can use to protect themselves and their families when facing a hospital stay, according to the organization’s website at www.hospitalsafetyscore.org.
Patients can also review their hospital’s past safety performance alongside its current grade on the Hospital Safety Score site, allowing them to determine which local hospitals have the best track record in patient safety and which have demonstrated consistent improvement.
Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Hospital also recently received the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With the Guidelines — Stroke Silver Plus Quality Achievement Award. The award recognizes the hospital’s commitment and success in ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines based on the latest scientific evidence. Darling Homes opens new patio home model
Darling Homes opened a new model home in Sienna Plantation’s latest enclave, the Village of Sawmill Lake in Missouri City.
The new model home at 2218 Twin Rose Drive is now open for tours. To celebrate the opening of the new model home, Darling Homes is hosting a grand opening 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday and noon to 4 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 20-22. The model home is one of eight patio home designs the homebuilder is constructing in the Rosewood neighborhood of the new village.
During the grand opening tours, representatives with Darling Homes will be available to answer questions while visitors tour the fully decorated and landscaped home. The builder plans to have a caricature artist on hand, as well as offering tastings of Houston-based Java Pura Coffee Roaster’s South American coffees to guests during the event.
Darling Homes and Trendmaker Homes are the exclusive builders in Rosewood, the fourth patio home community to be developed in the 10,000-acre, master-planned community. Upon completion, the neighborhood will consist of 38 homes.
Darling Homes’ threebedroom designs feature studies, media rooms, island kitchens, open-concept living spaces and covered patios. Homes range from approximately 2,200 to more than 3,000 square feet. Prices begin in the mid-$300,000s.
Trendmaker Homes offers 11 one- and two-story designs in the Rosewood neighborhood. Features on the 2,433- to 3,168-square foot homes include studies, open-plan great rooms, island kitchens and threecar garages. Homes are priced from the $440,000s.
Plans also include a new on-site elementary school slated to open in 2017 and an on-site middle school opening in 2018.
Sienna Plantation is a project of The Johnson Development Corp. For more information, visit www.siennaplantation.com.