Lake Region Healthcare Awarded Spring 2023 ‘A’ Hospital Safety Grade from Leapfrog Group
Contact: Katie Johnson
Grade reflects top national performance on patient safety through COVID-19 pandemic
Fergus Falls, MN, May 3, 2023 – Lake Region Healthcare (LRH) received an “A” Hospital Safety Grade from The Leapfrog Group, a national nonprofit upholding the standard of patient safety in hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers. This national distinction celebrates Lake Region Healthcare’s achievements in prioritizing patient safety by protecting patients from preventable harm and errors. The new grades reflect performance primarily during the height of the pandemic.
“Safety is always one of our key priorities. The pandemic raised the bar for safety in healthcare during a very stressful time of care delivery. I’m very proud of our team for maintaining the safety priority to such high standards and for this recognition of their efforts,” said Kent Mattson, LRH CEO.
The Leapfrog Group, an independent national watchdog organization, assigns an “A,” “B,” “C,” “D” or “F” grade to general hospitals across the country based on over 30 national performance measures reflecting errors, accidents, injuries and infections, as well as systems hospitals have in place to prevent harm.
“This new update of Hospital Safety Grades shows that, at the national level, we saw deterioration in patient safety with the pandemic,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “But this hospital received an ‘A’ despite those challenges. I congratulate all the leaders, staff, volunteers and clinicians who together made that possible.”
The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade is the only hospital ratings program based exclusively on hospital prevention of medical errors and harm to patients. The grading system is peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public. Grades are updated twice annually, in the fall and spring.
To see Lake Region Healthcare’s full grade details and to access patient tips for staying safe in the hospital, visit HospitalSafetyGrade.org and follow The Leapfrog Group on Twitter, Facebook and via its newsletter.
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About the Lake Region Healthcare Enterprise
The Lake Region Healthcare (LRH) enterprise is an independent, community owned and governed, non-profit healthcare organization headquartered in Fergus Falls. With facilities in nine communities, the midsized rural health system primarily serves five counties in west central Minnesota and eastern North Dakota. The enterprise operates two hospitals (in Fergus Falls and Elbow Lake), 10 clinics, a cancer center, a senior living community (Mill Street Residence), and various other health and wellness related ventures. With over 1,100 employees and 120 Physicians and Advance Practice Providers, we are dedicated to serving the healthcare needs of our communities close to home and delivering specialty and sub-specialty services at our locations in Fergus Falls, Elbow Lake, Ashby, Barnesville, Battle Lake, Evansville, Herman, Hoffman, and Morris, MN. For more information visit: www.lrhc.org and https://millstreet.lrhc.org.
Our Mission: We partner to enrich life through health.
Our Vision: We will create an exceptional, innovative, and personal healthcare experience that allows people to excel and our communities to thrive.
Our Values: Excellence, Person-Centered, Collaboration, Stewardship, Integrity, Respect, Innovation.
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 for patient safety. The flagship Leapfrog Hospital Survey and new Leapfrog Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC) Survey collect and transparently report hospital and ASC 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. For more, follow us on Twitter and Facebook, and sign up for our newsletter.