More than a dozen central Indiana hospitals received low patient safety ratings for 2022, according to a report released from a consumer watchdog.
Leapfrog Group, based in Washington D.C., rates nearly 3,000 hospitals across the country based on how well they protect patients. The group combines public data from the centers for Medicare and Medicaid services and surveys.
Each hospital in their report is graded on a scale of A through F.
The report highlights hospitals who lack trained intensive care unit doctors and those that have logged preventable medical errors, patient injuries and infections.
This year, the report included 27 local hospitals. Seven received the highest marks with an ‘A’, and nearly half of them received a ‘C’ or lower.
Indiana ranked 27 in the nation. This means around 27% of graded hospitals in Indiana received an A rating. Indiana moved up the rankings from 29th in the spring 2022 update.
Quality and Patient Safety Report, Vice President of the Indiana Hospital Association, Karin Kennedy, explains.
"The group has done this for over 20 years. The thought process is to be more transparent on quality. I think it's important for consumers patients and families to know this is just one report there is quite others," said Kenney.
None of the 75 Indiana hospitals included on the report received the lowest ranking of ‘F’, but one central Indiana hospital received a ‘D’ rating: Riverview Health in Noblesville.
Reasons listed by Leapfrog for the low grade include things like:
- bed sores
- patient falls
- blood clots
- blood leakage
- during surgery
- death from serious treatable complications
- infections
- below average handwashing and more
Riverview Health is also rated a 5 out of 100 for having specially trained doctors in the intensive care unit.
WRTV reached out to Riverview Health who said, “While it appreciates the organization's dedication to improving the quality of healthcare, it doesn't believe this survey truly reflects the overall quality of care it provides."
Below is where 26 other central Indiana were graded on a scale of A to C.
Hospitals with a ‘C’ rating:
- Ascension St. Vincent Kokomo
- Columbus Regional Hospital
- Community Hospital Anderson
- Community Hospital South - Indianapolis
- Eskenazi Health - 720 Eskenazi Ave - Indianapolis
- Franciscan Health - Carmel
- Franciscan Health - Indianapolis
- IU Health Ball state - Muncie
- IU Health Methodist Hospital - Indianapolis
- IU Health West - Avon
- Johnson Memorial Hospital
- Logansport Memorial Hospital
- Witham Health Services - Lebanon
Hospitals with a ‘B’ rating:
- Community Hospital East - 1500 N. Ritter Indianapolis
- Franciscan Health Lafayette East
- IU Health Arnett - Lafayette
- IU Health Bloomington
- Reid Health - Richmond
- St. Vincent Hospital 2001 W. 86th street
Hospitals with an ‘A’ rating:
- Ascension St. Vincent Fishers Hospital
- Community Howard Regional Health - Kokomo
- Franciscan Health - Crawfordsville
- Hancock Regional - Greenfield
- IU Health North Hospital - Carmel
- Monroe Hospital - Bloomington
- St. Vincent Anderson Regional Hospital
Eskenazi health is listed below average for staph and colon infections in patients, death from treatable serious complications, accidental cuts and tears during surgery, patients falling causing broken hips and more.
Eskenazi Health and Community Hospital in Anderson both received a 5 out of 100 for specially trained doctors in the ICU – the lowest score in the state, according to the report.
Franciscan Health is listed as being "below average" for surgical wounds splitting open, death from serious treatable complications, kidney injury after surgery, accidental tears and cuts, blood clots, patient falls and infections. They declined to report if the hospital has enough qualified nurses and ICU nurses.
"Any kind of medical error, or a hospital acquired condition is one too many, Kenney said. “They take that very, very seriously.”
WRTV also reached out to the Indiana Hospital Association to find the cause of the low scores, specifically when it comes to staffing in the ICU.
"There's been a lot of turnovers. So, for instance, recently there have been a lot of turnover and infection and infection preventionists and control all those types of professionals," Kenney said. "You know, our healthcare workers right now. There are very stretched, then hospital capacities right now are high. So yeah, so that could certainly be one of those reasons. It also could be I believe that that component actually falls into the self-assessment component or that that leapfrog survey that hospitals complete on their own."
Most hospitals declined an interview and referred us to the Indiana Patient Safety Coalition. WRTV has reached out to them for comment.
IHA also works with the coalition and Kennedy says they evaluate the reports and use those to hold hospitals accountable.
"The hospital association, we work with our members across the board, looking at hospital acquired infections, and looking at infection prevention as a whole. You know, hospitals are very strained right now. But it's very important that, you know, we don't cut corners, especially when it comes to patient safety and reducing harm," Kennedy said.
She also says patients have a right to hold their health care providers accountable. If you see something you’re not comfortable with, say something.
"For instance, if some healthcare provider comes in and you notice that they're in a hurry, and they forgot to do good hygiene, how hand hygiene, speak up,” Kennedy said.
Leapfrog issued the following statement to WRTV:
“The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade assigns an A, B, C, D or F to general hospitals in Indiana and across the U.S. it is the only rating program focused exclusively on how safe they are for their patients. The grade uses over 30 measures including rates of preventable errors, injuries, and infections, and whether hospitals have systems in place to prevent them. Grades are updated twice annually, in the fall and spring, and freely available to the public at www.hospitalsafetygrade.org. The Hospital Safety Grade uses a public, peer-reviewed methodology, calculated by top patient safety experts under the guidance of a National Expert Panel, and is 100% transparent and free to the public. Indiana ranked 27 in the nation. This means around 27% of graded hospitals in Indiana received an A rating. Indiana moved up the rankings from 29th in the spring 2022 update.”
