Infection, patient falls cited as concerns in central PA hospitals. See safety grades
Safe medication administration, patient falls and dangerous blood clots were cited as areas of concern for central Pennsylvania hospitals in a watchdog report released Nov. 16.
The Leapfrog Group is a nonprofit organization that provides ratings and safety data for hospitals and it recently released ratings for nearly 3,000 hospitals across the country. The fall 2022 grades mark the 10th anniversary of Leapfrog’s ranking.
Death from serious treatable complications and C. diff infection were also areas in which some local hospitals scored below average for safety standards.
Mount Nittany Medical Center and Penn Highlands Huntingdon both received the worst grade given to any hospital for the category “specially trained doctors care for [intensive care unit] patients,” and UPMC Lock Haven received the worst score for C. diff infection and patient falls and injuries.
One of the five hospitals included in this review had an improved grade compared to Leapfrog’s spring ratings, while the other four received the same overall letter grade as in the previous season.
Here’s how local hospitals performed, according to Leapfrog, including how to interpret ratings and which areas should be most heavily considered.
Mount Nittany Medical Center
Fall 2022 grade: B
Spring 2022: C
Fall 2021: C
Leapfrog’s website says Mount Nittany Medical Center declined to respond to the group’s survey. Here are the areas in which the hospital scored below average this fall:
C. diff infection
Surgical site infection after colon surgery
Sepsis infection after surgery
Death from serious treatable complications
Patient falls and injuries
Dangerous blood clot
Safe medication administration
Hand-washing
Communication about medicines (0.97 points worse than average)
Specially trained doctors care for ICU patients (Mount Nittany Medical Center received a 5 out of 100 in this category, the lowest score given to any hospital.)
“Mount Nittany Health is proud to adhere to the highest safety standards and provide the highest quality of patient care for our community every day,” Dr. Nirmal Joshi, Mount Nittany Health’s chief medical officer population health and board chair of Pennsylvania’s Patient Safety Authority, said in a statement.
“For the fourth consecutive year, Mount Nittany Health received a 5-star quality rating from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, which is its top rating and puts us among an elite group in the nation. Mount Nittany Health also earned The Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval for quality care and patient safety, another nationally recognized rating for outstanding care. In addition, Mount Nittany Medical Center was named a ‘World’s Best Hospital’ by Newsweek, and was ranked among the Best Hospitals for Maternity by U.S. News and World Report. It was also recognized by the American Health Association/American Stroke Association with the Stroke Gold Plus Award and Stroke Elite, among other prestigious honors. While we are proud of these honors, we are even prouder of the compassionate, excellent clinical care and extraordinary service that has made Mount Nittany Health the leading provider of primary and specialty care in our community.”
Geisinger Lewistown Hospital
Fall 2022 grade: A
Spring 2022: A
Fall 2021: A
Here are the areas in which Geisinger Lewistown Hospital scored below average:
C. diff infection
Infection in the blood
Blood leakage
Hand-washing (Geisinger Lewistown Hospital received a 40 out of 100 for hand-washing. The average score was 69.55.)
“This recognition speaks volumes about the care each and every one of our staff members provides to our patients and the community every day,” Kirk Thomas, chief administrative officer for Geisinger’s western region, said in a statement. “Patient safety is always a top priority for us, and we continue to make improvements and invest in ways to meet the needs of our community. I thank the entire team for their commitment to providing safe and quality care.”
UPMC Lock Haven
Fall 2022 grade: C
Spring 2022: C
Fall 2021: Not graded
Here are the areas in which UPMC Lock Haven scored below average:
C. diff infection (UPMC Lock Haven received a score of 1.844 in this category, the worst score given to any hospital.)
Patient falls and injuries (UPMC Lock Haven received a score of 2.014 in this category, the worst score given to any hospital.)
Falls causing broken hips
UPMC Altoona
Fall 2022 grade: A
Spring 2022: A
Fall 2021: A
Here are the areas in which UPMC Altoona scored below average:
C. diff infection
Infection in the urinary tract
Surgical site infection after colon surgery
Surgical wounds split open
Death from serious treatable complications
Kidney injury after surgery
Serious breathing problem
Patient falls and injuries
Collapsed lung
UPMC officials were not immediately available for comment.
Penn Highlands Huntingdon
Fall 2022 grade: C
Spring 2022: C
Fall 2021: C
Leapfrog’s website says Penn Highlands Huntingdon officials declined to respond to the survey. Here are the areas where the hospital scored below average:
Blood leakage
Dangerous blood clot
Doctors order medications through a computer (Penn Highlands Huntingdon scored a 45 out of 100 in this category. The average score was 87.)
Safe medication administration
Hand-washing
Specially trained doctors care for ICU patients (Penn Highlands Huntingdon received a 5 out of 100 in this category, the lowest score given to any hospital.)
Communication with doctors
Penn Highlands Huntingdon officials were not immediately available for comment.
How are hospital grades calculated?
Safety grades are calculated using up to 22 national safety measures from the Leapfrog survey and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The full methodology is available online and is peer-reviewed by the Journal of Patient Safety.
Grades are composed 50% by process and structural measures and 50% by outcome measures. The scoring scales differ by the chosen measure.
Across the U.S., 30% of hospitals received an “A,” 28% received a “B,” 36% received a “C,” 6% received a “D” and 1% received an “F” in the fall 2022 ratings.
How should I use these scores?
Leapfrog emphasizes you should not refuse emergency care based on hospital ratings. The group intends the scores to be used when planning hospital events, such as childbirth, surgery referrals or chronic illness treatment.
The areas you should pay most attention to when choosing a hospital include hand-washing, infection in the blood and patient falls, Leapfrog’s website says.
You should also consider how far off your hospital was from the average for any given standard. When evaluating a hospital, you can see the highest and lowest scores given, which helps in weighing a value. The “below average” category can include hospitals that scored 0.01 points under goal, along with facilities with the lowest possible score.
For hospitals that responded to Leapfrog’s survey, there’s often information available about which areas the hospital has improved in and which areas are not going in the right direction.
A hospital being ungraded does not denote a lack of safety. Ratings are often unavailable for facilities that decline to self-report, as well as smaller providers, children’s hospitals, surgical centers and critical access hospitals.
Where can I find more hospital ratings?
Leapfrog allows you to search for hospitals by name, location or state. There’s an search tool where you can find information about more hospitals.
This story was originally published December 12, 2022 at 11:00 AM.
