Evans Army Community Hospital received the highest score amongst all military healthcare facilities in the Leapfrog Group’s fall 2024 assessment released Nov. 15, 2024.
The Leapfrog Group is a national, independent organization that focuses on healthcare quality. Leapfrog evaluates hospital safety measures such as errors, injuries, and infections. Their grading system uses more than 30 national performance indicators.
A hospital must meet specific criteria if they want to participate in the assessment. In the fall 2024 ratings, 32% of participating hospitals nationwide got the highest grade. Of the eligible military hospitals that took part, 75% got an “A” grade. Evans Army Community Hospital was one of 15 military medical treatment facilities to receive an "A" grade for fall 2024.
“Achieving these grades is no small feat,” said Dr. Paul Cordts, the Defense Health Agency’s Deputy Assistant Director for Medical Affairs and Chief Medical Officer. “The commitment of our team to ensure the safety of every patient in our care shows that military treatment facilities are among the best in the country when it comes to protecting patients and ensuring high standards.”
Leapfrog provides a framework for hospitals and healthcare systems to compare their performance in safety and quality measures.
“It takes a true team effort to achieve such distinction from Leapfrog and our whole team is proud to be recognized among the elite hospitals in patient safety,” said Col. Matthew Mapes, Evans Army Community Hospital commander. “This grade recognizes and validates the entire hospital team’s efforts and focus on protecting our patients from preventable harm and error in the hospital. I couldn’t be more proud of the EACH Team.”
DHA’s engagement with Leapfrog began more than five years ago when the Military Health System started using Leapfrog’s evaluations in its Quality Assurance Program. Walter Reed National Military Medical Center first used the Leapfrog survey. After getting positive results, DHA expanded the program.
“Our teams have worked hard to implement Leapfrog’s quality and safety measures, and we’re proud to see those efforts reflected in the grades received,” said Cordts. “This achievement is a testament to the skill, dedication, and unwavering focus of our medical teams to create a safe environment for our patients.”
The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade program is updated twice a year. Leapfrog evaluates public and private hospitals. Its grades are based on national standards for hospital safety and highlight risks that patients may face in a healthcare setting. This includes preventable medical errors and infections. The ratings are publicly available. This helps patients easily find their local healthcare facilities safety standards.
“Everyone who works at Evans Army Community Hospital should be proud of this ‘A’ Hospital Safety Grade,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “It takes complete dedication at every level, and an ironclad commitment to putting patients first. I thank Evans Army Community Hospital, its leadership, clinicians, staff, and volunteers for caring so deeply for its patients and their safety.”
(Kelly Kollar, Defense Health Agency, also contributed to this news report)
Date Taken: | 11.19.2024 |
Date Posted: | 11.19.2024 15:45 |
Story ID: | 485690 |
Location: | FORT CARSON, COLORADO, US |
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