Four University of Maryland Medical System Hospitals Earn ‘A’ In Spring 2021 Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade

BALTIMORE – Four University of Maryland Medical System hospitals – the University of Maryland Baltimore Washington Medical Center (UM BWMC) in Glen Burnie (Anne Arundel County), the University of Maryland Medical Center Midtown Campus (Baltimore City), University of Maryland Shore Medical Center at Chestertown (Kent County), and University of Maryland Shore Medical Center at Easton (Talbot County), all earned an "A" in the Spring 2021 Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade. This marks the fourth consecutive reporting period that BWMC has earned an 'A', the third straight 'A' safety rating for UMMC Midtown, and the second consecutive period that both Eastern Shore hospitals have received an 'A'.

The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade is a national distinction recognizing a hospital's achievements in providing safer healthcare by protecting patients from errors, injuries, accidents and infections.

"Earning this recognition four times in a row demonstrates the unwavering commitment of our team members to provide best-in-class patient care every day," said Kathy McCollum, President and CEO of UM BWMC. "We are proud to have achieved this national recognition, and our patients and families can feel confident that they'll receive high quality, safe care."

"We are extremely pleased to once again achieve The Leapfrog Group's highest safety grade," said Alison G. Brown, MPH, BSN, President of the UMMC Midtown Campus. "This national award reflects the tremendous dedication and commitment of our doctors, nurses and other team members to provide the highest-quality medical care to our patients and to keep them safe – even as we continue to cope with challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic."

"We are incredibly proud of this very significant accomplishment," said Ken Kozel, President and CEO, UM Shore Regional Health. "Our team members are exceptional, and I am deeply grateful for their dedication to patient care and safety, especially during this pandemic."

"An 'A' safety grade is an elite designation that your community should be proud of," said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. "The past year has been extraordinarily difficult for hospitals, but these grades show it is possible to keep a laser focus on patients and their safety, no matter what it takes."

The Leapfrog Group is an independent national watchdog organization committed to health care quality and safety. The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade assigns an "A," "B," "C," "D,"; or "F" grade to all general hospitals across the country and is updated every six months. It is the only hospital ratings program based exclusively on hospitals' prevention of medical errors and other harms to patients in their care.

Developed under the guidance of a national expert panel, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses up to 27 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign grades to more than 2,700 U.S. acute-care hospitals twice per year. The Hospital Safety Grade's methodology is peer-reviewed and fully transparent, and the results are free to the public and available at hospitalsafetygrade.org.

About the University of Maryland Medical System

The University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS) is a university-based regional health care system focused on serving the health care needs of Maryland, bringing innovation, discovery and research to the care we provide and educating the state's future physician and health care professionals through our partnership with the University of Maryland School of Medicine and University of Maryland, Baltimore professional schools (Nursing, Pharmacy, Social Work and Dentistry) in Baltimore. As one of the largest private employers in the State, the health system's more than 29,500 employees and 4,000 affiliated physicians provide primary and specialty care in more than 150 locations, including 13 hospitals and 9 University of Maryland Urgent Care centers. The UMMS flagship academic campus, the University of Maryland Medical Center in downtown Baltimore, is recognized regionally and nationally for excellence and innovation in specialized care. Our acute care and specialty rehabilitation hospitals serve urban, suburban and rural communities and are located in 13 counties across the State. For more information, visit www.umms.org.

About the University of Maryland Baltimore Washington Medical Center

The University of Maryland Baltimore Washington Medical Center (UM BWMC) is an acute-care facility that is part of the University of Maryland Medical System. It is located in Glen Burnie, Maryland and has 285 beds and more than 3,500 employees. It also has 1,000 medical providers in over 50 specialties. For more information, visit www.umbwmc.org.

About the University of Maryland Medical Center

The University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC) is comprised of two hospital campuses in Baltimore: the 800-bed flagship institution of the 13-hospital University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS) — and the 200-bed UMMC Midtown Campus, both academic medical centers training physicians and health professionals and pursuing research and innovation to improve health. UMMC's downtown campus is a national and regional referral center for trauma, cancer care, neurosciences, advanced cardiovascular care, women's and children's health, and has one of the largest solid organ transplant programs in the country. All physicians on staff at the downtown campus are clinical faculty physicians of the University of Maryland School of Medicine. The UMMC Midtown Campus medical staff is predominately faculty physicians specializing in diabetes, chronic diseases, behavioral health, long term acute care and an array of outpatient primary care and specially services. UMMC Midtown has been a teaching hospital for 140 years and is located one mile away from the downtown campus. For more information, visit www.umm.edu.

About UM Shore Regional Health

As part of the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS), University of Maryland Shore Regional Health is the principal provider of comprehensive health care services for more than 170,000 residents of Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne's and Talbot counties on Maryland's Eastern Shore. UM Shore Regional Health's team of more than 2,600 employees, medical staff, board members and volunteers work with various community partners to fulfill the organization's mission of Creating Healthier Communities Together.

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 and new Leapfrog Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC) Survey collect and transparently report hospital and ASC 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.

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