For Immediate Release November 06, 2019

Leapfrog Fall 2019

For the third consecutive grading period, University of Maryland St. Joseph Medical Center has been awarded an ‘A’ in Patient Safety from The Leapfrog Group. This latest designation, earned according to the fall 2019 Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, follows the hospital’s two previous Grade ‘A’s’, awarded in fall 2018 and spring 2019, respectively.

This recognition underscores UM St. Joseph’s vigilant and continuous work in protecting patients from harm and providing safe, quality health care. The Leapfrog Group is a national nonprofit organization committed to improving health care quality and safety for healthcare consumers throughout the nation. The Safety Grade assigns an ‘A’, ‘B’, ‘C’, ‘D’ or ‘F’ grade to hospitals across the country based on their performance in preventing medical errors, injuries, accidents, infections and other harms to patients in their care.

“Being recognized for the third time in a row signifies our staff’s unyielding focus on patient safety,” says UM St. Joseph Medical Center President and CEO Thomas B. Smyth, MD. “We’re proud of this distinguished recognition, and even more proud of what it means to those we serve: consistently safe, high-quality, excellent care experiences. This latest Grade ‘A’ reinforces to our patients, our community and our referring providers that they can expect exceptional care at UM St. Joseph Medical Center.”

“‘A’ hospitals show us their leadership is protecting patients from preventable medical harm and error,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “It takes genuine commitment at every level – from clinicians to administrators to the board of directors – and we congratulate the teams who have worked so hard to earn this A.”

Developed under the guidance of a national Expert Panel, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses 28 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign grades to more than 2,600 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.

UM St. Joseph Medical Center was awarded an ‘A’ grade today, when Leapfrog announced grades for the fall 2019 update. “At UM St. Joseph, we are dedicated to saving and changing lives,” says Dr. Smyth. “Our accomplishment honors this sacred commitment to our patients, community and staff.”

To see UM SJMC’s full grade details, and to access patient tips for staying safe in the hospital, visit hospitalsafetygrade.org.