Lehigh Regional Medical Center among top 10% in nation for patient safety
Lehigh Acres, FL – March 12, 2024 – Lehigh Regional Medical Center, a member of Prime Healthcare, announced today that it has been recognized as a 2024 Patient Safety Excellence Award™ recipient by Healthgrades, the leading resource consumers use to find a hospital or doctor. This achievement for six consecutive years, along with Lehigh Regional Medical Center’s accomplishments as Healthgrades Five-Star Recipient for Hip Fracture Treatment (five consecutive years) and Gallbladder Surgery (eight consecutive years) reflects Lehigh Regional Medical Center’s commitment to delivering safe, high-quality care.
“Lehigh Regional Medical Center has cultivated an outstanding safety culture that prioritizes the well-being of both patients and staff, setting a high standard for patient safety nationwide,” said Brad Bowman, MD, chief medical officer and head of data science at Healthgrades. “We’re proud to recognize Lehigh Regional Medical Center for providing top-quality care while preventing serious injuries to patients during their hospital stay.”
Other clinical recognition Lehigh Regional Medical Center has earned recently include a “B” Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade for Fall 2023, “A” Grade on the Lown Institute Hospitals Index for Social Responsibility in 2023, and LifeLink® Platinum Recognition annually since 2017.
“We are honored to be receiving the Patient Safety Excellence Award from Healthgrades for the 6th year in a row. This award showcases our continued dedication to patient safety and quality care to those we serve. The entire team at Lehigh Regional Medical Center strives to always provide the very best care and service,” said Dayna Flores, Director, Performance Improvement.
Hollie Vaughan, Regional CNO, Prime Healthcare shared, “I’m extremely proud of our team’s achievement of a 6th consecutive Patient Safety Excellence Award. Our entire staff works hard every day, focused on supporting a culture of safety and providing quality healthcare to every patient.”
“Achieving this award for the 6th year confirms our team’s focus on the best clinical outcomes for our patients. It’s a privilege to be part of a team who continually strives to improve quality and positively impact the health of the community we serve,” said Cheryl McIntire, CEO of Lehigh Regional Medical Center.
Healthgrades evaluated risk-adjusted complication and mortality rates for approximately 4,500 hospitals nationwide to determine this year’s top-performing hospitals for patient safety. During the 2020-2022 study period, nearly 170,000 potentially preventable safety events occurred among Medicare patients in U.S. hospitals, with four patient safety indicators accounting for close to 75% of these incidents.* Healthgrades’ analysis revealed that patients treated in hospitals receiving the 2024 Patient Safety Excellence Award have a significantly lower chance of experiencing one of the four leading safety indicators than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals:
- In-hospital fall resulting in fracture (approximately 52% less likely)
- Collapsed lung due to a procedure or surgery in or around the chest (approximately 56% less likely)
- Pressure sores or bed sores acquired in the hospital (approximately 67% less likely)
- Catheter-related bloodstream infections acquired in the hospital (approximately 71% less likely)
Where you’re treated matters, which is why Healthgrades is committed to providing the most scientifically accurate information about doctors and hospitals–with data insights not available anywhere else. To learn more about how Healthgrades measures hospital quality, visit healthgrades.com.
*Statistics are calculated from Healthgrades Patient Safety Ratings and Excellence Award methodology which is based primarily on AHRQ technical specifications (Version 2023.0.1) to MedPAR data from approximately 4,500 hospitals for years 2020 through 2022 and represent three-year estimates for Medicare patients only.
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Lehigh Regional Medical Center
Lehigh Regional Medical Center, a member of Prime Healthcare is accredited by The Joint Commission with the Gold Seal of Approval as a 53-bed acute-care facility. Committed to compassionate care, Lehigh Regional Medical Center has uniquely served its five-county community in Lehigh Acres, Florida, since 1965. The state-of-the-art hospital provides specialty care services that include Emergency Services, Cardiology, Critical Care, Gastroenterology, General Surgery, Nephrology, and Orthopedics delivering patient-centered healthcare with dignity and respect for all. LehighRegional.com
About Healthgrades
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