Two Memorial Healthcare System Hospitals Ranked 2018 Best Hospitals by The Leapfrog Group

HOLLYWOOD, Fla., Dec. 20, 2018 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Memorial Hospital West and Memorial Hospital Miramar have been named by The Leapfrog Group, a national healthcare nonprofit driven by employers and other purchasers of healthcare. The recognition comes just weeks after five hospitals were awarded an "A" for patient safety in The Leapfrog Group's fall . These are among the highest distinctions given by The Leapfrog Group for commitment to keeping patients safe and for meeting the highest safety standards in the U.S.

and made the ranks of 2018 Top Hospitals for the first time this year. They are two out of 118 hospitals nationwide to achieve the rating. Of the 118 Top Hospitals recognized, 13 were Top Children's Hospitals, 35 were Top General Hospitals, 53 were Top Teaching Hospitals and 17 were Top Rural Hospitals. Memorial Hospital West and Memorial Hospital Miramar were among the 10 Top Florida General Hospitals and the only hospitals to be recognized in the tri-country areas of Broward, Dade and Monroe.

"Leapfrog is proud to recognize the recipients of our most elite award for safety and quality," said Leah Binder, President and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. "We're encouraged by the hard work of Top Hospitals, as well as all of the hospitals that compete for this award. Their transparency and determination delivers the best possible care in their communities."

"For the patients we serve, these distinctions demonstrate our commitment to making patient safety a priority at every level throughout our healthcare system," said Aurelio M. Fernandez, III, FACHE, President and Chief Executive Officer, Memorial Healthcare System. "It also shows the dedication and focus that our healthcare team – from physicians to staff – has in providing the highest level of quality care and service to everyone we have the privilege to care for and support throughout his or her journey of healing and recovering."

The Leapfrog Group is a national nonprofit healthcare ratings organization that is committed to improving healthcare quality and safety for consumers and purchasers. The organization assigns letter grades ranging from A-F to hospitals across the country based on their performance in preventing medical errors, infections and other harms among patients in their care.

Performance across many areas of hospital care is considered for the competitive award, including preventing infections, reducing C-sections, use of technology to ensure safer care and leadership policies and practices. The winners were officially recognized at Leapfrog's Annual Awards Dinner and Ceremony on December 4, 2018 in Washington, DC.

Data used to identify Top Hospitals are gathered and publicly reported through The Leapfrog Hospital Survey. The Leapfrog Hospital Survey compares hospitals' performance on national standards of patient safety, quality, efficiency and management structures that prevent errors, providing the most comprehensive picture of how patients fare at individual institutions. The data collected also enable hospitals to benchmark their progress toward The Leapfrog Group's standards and measure the care they deliver.

"Leapfrog's Hospital Safety Grades recognize hospitals like Memorial Healthcare System that focus on advancing patient safety. This ranking provides an important resource for patients, and a benchmark for hospitals, to determine how care at one hospital compares to others in a region," said Binder. "Hospitals that earn an A Hospital Safety Grade deserve to be recognized for their efforts in preventing medical harm and errors."

Memorial Healthcare System hospitals received A's across all five adult hospitals after a longstanding system-wide commitment to make Memorial the safest health provider in the nation. For the last three rating periods, Memorial Regional Hospital, Memorial Regional Hospital South, Memorial Hospital Pembroke and Memorial Hospital West have earned an "A." Memorial Hospital Miramar has earned A's consecutively for all rating periods since 2015.

Developed under the guidance of a National Expert Panel, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses 28 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign grades to more than 2,600 U.S. hospitals twice per year. The Hospital Safety Grade's methodology is peer-reviewed and fully transparent, and the results are free to the public. To see each Memorial Healthcare System hospital's full grade details, and to access patient tips for staying safe in the hospital, visit .

About Memorial Healthcare System
Since its inception in 1953, Memorial Healthcare System has been a leader in providing high-quality healthcare services to South Florida residents. Today, it is one of the largest public healthcare systems in the nation and highly regarded for its exceptional patient- and family-centered care. Its facilities include Memorial Regional Hospital, Memorial Regional Hospital South, Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital, Memorial Hospital West, Memorial Hospital Miramar, Memorial Hospital Pembroke and Memorial Manor nursing home. For more information, visit .

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 healthcare. 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.

SOURCE Memorial Healthcare System