St. David's HealthCare hospitals earn 'A' safety rating for spring 2022

Austin-area St. David's HealthCare facilities are being nationally recognized for receiving "A" ratings for the Spring 2022 Leapfrog Safety Ratings.

By receiving all "A" ratings, the hospital system is being recognized for providing "safer health care and protecting patients from harm," according to an announcement from St. David's HealthCare. This announcement states that St. David's is the only hospital system in the Austin area to receive this rating for all of its eligible facilities.

It is the only area health system to receive this rating for all of its facilities for each examination period since the Hospital Safety Score initiative was launched in 2012, according to the release.

“This recognition illustrates the dedication of our physicians, nurses and staff to providing exceptional care to every patient, every day,” said Ken Mitchell, M.D., chief medical officer of St. David’s HealthCare. “St. David’s HealthCare is committed to advancing the services we provide through long-standing strategies, policies and education initiatives for our care teams.”

The Leapfrog Group is an independent nonprofit that assigns letter grades to hospitals across the U.S. based on more than 30 performance measures, including prevention of medical errors, injuries, infections and accidents among patients in the care of these facilities. The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade is peer-reviewed and available to the public. It is updated biannually, in the fall and spring.

Facilities in the St. David's HealthCare system that received this rating are St. David's Medical Center, St. David's North Austin Medical Center, St. David's South Austin Medical Center, St. David's Round Rock Medical Center and St. David's Georgetown Hospital. The system's Heart Hospital of Austin and St. David's Surgical Hospital were not eligible for the rating because they are considered specialty facilities, according to the release from St. David's.