An announcement released nationally by the independent hospital watchdog The Leapfrog Group, shows key shifts among many hospitals on the A,B,C,D and F grades rating them on errors, injuries, accidents and infections. St. Francis Medical Center, Trenton, was the only hospital in Mercer County to earn an A in this national rating program, recognizing its strong commitment to patient safety. The Hospital Safety Score is the gold standard rating for patient safety, compiled under the guidance of the nation’s leading patient safety experts and administered by The Leapfrog Group, a national, independent nonprofit. The first and only hospital safety rating to be peer-reviewed in the Journal of Patient Safety, the Hospital Safety Score is free to the public and designed to give consumers information they can use to protect themselves and their families when facing a hospital stay.

“This score is indicative of the continuous commitment of St. Francis Medical Center to the highest standards in patient quality and safety. The culture of quality and safety permeates all levels of the medical center,” said Dr. James C. Romano, chief medical officer of St. Francis Medical Center. “We are justifiably proud of the team effort by the physicians, clinicians and support staff that makes the attainment of this achievement a reality,” said Vincent Constantino, chief administrative officer.

“St. Francis Medical Center’s A grade is a powerful reminder of its commitment to putting patient safety above all else, and we are pleased to recognize the persistent efforts of your clinicians and staff to protect your patients,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group, which administers the Hospital Safety Score.

“Our families, neighbors, colleagues and friends deserve a hospital that will pull out all the stops to keep them safe, and we urge St. Francis Medical Center and all other A hospitals to preserve and renew your commitment to safety year after year.”

Developed under the guidance of Leapfrog’s Blue Ribbon Expert Panel, the Hospital Safety Score uses 28 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to produce a single A, B, C, D or F score, representing a hospital’s overall capacity to keep patients safe from preventable harm.  More than 2,500 U.S. general hospitals were assigned scores in October, 2015, with 773 hospitals receiving an A grade. The Hospital Safety Score offers a full analysis of the data and methodology used in determining grades on the website. Patients can also review their hospital’s past safety performance alongside its current grade on the Hospital Safety Score site, allowing them to determine which local hospitals have the best track record in patient safety and which have demonstrated consistent improvement.

To see St. Francis Medical Center’s full score, visit www.hospitalsafetyscore.org.