All eligible Lifespan hospitals – Rhode Island Hospital, The Miriam Hospital and Newport Hospital – earned an “A” grade in the most recent Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades announced today.

The Leapfrog Group is a Washington D.C-based organization that assigns grades of A, B, C, D and F to hospitals across the country, based on performance in preventing medical errors, infections and other harms. Nationally, approximately 2,500 hospitals are graded twice per year, and just 750 earned an “A,” putting Lifespan’s three hospitals in the top third of graded hospitals. This is the third time in recent years that Lifespan’s facilities have achieved top grades across the board.

“This is the only national rating of how well hospitals protect patients from preventable harm and death, such as medical errors, infections, and injuries,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “Receiving an ‘A’ Safety Grade means a hospital is among the best in the country for preventing these terrible problems and putting their patients first, 24 hours a day.”

“Whether it’s in patient experience, infection prevention, clinical outcomes or any other measure, there is always a dedicated community of professionals working together in pursuit of excellence,” said Cathy E. Duquette,  Ph.D., RN, Lifespan executive vice president for nursing affairs. “We are proud that our three hospitals have again achieved this top distinction as measured by The Leapfrog Group.”

Developed under the guidance of an expert panel, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses 27 measures of publicly available hospital safety data. It is peer reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public.

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 collects and transparently reports hospital 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.