Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH) Somerset, an RWJBarnabas Health facility, has been recognized with the Healthgrades 2021 Patient Safety Excellence AwardTM. This distinction places RWJUH Somerset among the top 5% in the nation for patient safety based on patient safety data from acute care hospitals evaluated by Healthgrades, the leading marketplace connecting patients and providers.
“Through our journey to become a High Reliability Organization (HRO), we have developed a culture of patient safety at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Somerset,” said Tony Cava, president and chief executive officer, RWJUH Somerset. “No matter where they work in the hospital, our team members each play an important role in ensuring our patients receive the highest quality care in a safe environment. Patient safety always comes first.”
Nationally, there are a large number of potentially preventable patient safety events among Medicare patients in U.S. hospitals, according to Healthgrades.* If all hospitals, as a group, performed similarly to hospitals performing better than expected on each of 13 Patient Safety Indicators (PSIs) evaluated by Healthgrades, on average, half of the patient safety events could be avoided.
Healthgrades found that patients treated in hospitals receiving the Healthgrades 2021 Patient Safety Excellence Award were, on average less likely to experience hip fractures from falls, bed sores, bloodstream infections or a lung event from surgery.
“The importance of hospital quality is now at the forefront of consumer’s minds, especially as we continue to navigate COVID-19. We congratulate the recipients of the Healthgrades 2021 Patient Safety Excellence Award for their ongoing commitment to upholding the highest quality standards for their patients and communities,” said Brad Bowman, MD, chief medical officer, Healthgrades.
RWJUH Somerset also earned an “A” Hospital Safety Score – the highest patient safety rating – from The Leapfrog Group, an independent hospital watchdog organization, in its spring 2021 ratings which were released in April. It was the hospital’s sixth consecutive “A” rating and twelfth “A” overall. RWJUH Somerset is also designated as a Magnet hospital for nursing excellence. The hospital has earned the Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval for total knee and total hip replacement surgery and its stroke and acute myocardial infarction programs. The Steeplechase Cancer Center has been nationally accredited by the Commission on Cancer. For six years in a row, the hospital has been named a Leader in LGBTQ Healthcare Equality by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation.
For more information about Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Somerset, visit www.rwjbh.org/somerset.
*Statistics are calculated from Healthgrades Patient Safety Ratings and Excellence Award methodology which is based primarily on AHRQ technical specifications (Version 2020.0.1) to MedPAR data for years 2017 through 2019 and represent three-year estimates for Medicare patients only.
