Eastside Medical Center announced today that it is a recipient of the Healthgrades 2017 Patient Safety Excellence Award™, a designation that recognizes superior performance in hospitals that have prevented the occurrence of serious, potentially avoidable complications for patients during hospital stays. The distinction places Eastside Medical Center among the top 5% of all short-term acute care hospitals reporting patient safety data for its excellent performance as evaluated by Healthgrades, the leading online resource for comprehensive information about physicians and hospitals. Eastside Medical Center is one of eighteen hospitals in Georgia that was awarded this honor and the only hospital in Metro-Atlanta.
During the 2013-2015 study period, Healthgrades found that patients treated in hospitals receiving the Patient Safety Excellence Award were, on average:
- 40.0% less likely to experience an accidental puncture or laceration during a procedure, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals.
- 44.6% less likely to experience a collapsed lung due to a procedure or surgery in or around the chest, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals.
- 54.4% less likely to experience catheter-related bloodstream infections acquired at the hospital, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals.
- 50.2% less likely to experience pressure sores or bed sores acquired in the hospital, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals.1
“Keeping our hospital safe is a shared responsibility and requires all hands on deck with every staff member,” explained Eastside Medical Center’s Vice President of Quality Denise Flook, “Here at Eastside, we make sure processes are in place to prevent errors, falls, injuries, and prevent and control infection. By attention to detail, and open communication amongst all caregivers, patients, and their families, we are able to make Eastside a safe place for patients, visitors, and staff.”
On average, 134,568 patient safety events could have been avoided if all hospitals, as a group from 2013 to 2015, performed similarly to hospitals performing better than expected on each of 13 patient safety indicators evaluated by Healthgrades.
“This award speaks to the work that our clinical team, physician team, and quality team have put in to make sure that Eastside is the safest place for our community to receive care,” stated Eastside Medical Center’s Chief Executive Officer Trent Lind.
“Hospitals who have been recognized as Healthgrades 2017 Patient Safety Excellence Award recipients have minimized patient safety events and also surpassed expectations in preventing safety incidents,” said Brad Bowman, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Healthgrades. “We applaud these hospitals for their performance and for their organizational commitment to delivering high-quality care.”
During the study period (2013-2015), Healthgrades 2017 Patient Safety Excellence Award recipient hospitals demonstrated excellent performance in safety provided for patients in the Medicare population, as measured by objective outcomes (risk-adjusted patient safety indicator rates) for 13 patient safety indicators defined by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ).
For more information about Healthgrades or to download a full copy of the report, or to receive information about hospital and physician quality, visit: www.Healthgrades.com/quality today.
