BMC Receives Healthgrades 2018 Patient Safety Excellence Award
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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — For the second year in a row, Berkshire Medical Center has received the Healthgrades Patient Safety Excellence Award, a designation that recognizes superior performance of hospitals that have prevented the occurrence of serious, potentially avoidable complications for patients during hospital stays.
The 2018 distinction places BMC among the top 10 percent of all short-term acute care hospitals reporting patient safety data for its excellent performance as evaluated by Healthgrades, the leading online resource for comprehensive information about physicians and hospitals.
This is the second time in less than a month that BMC's Patient Safety record has been recognized by a national organization that analyzes and rates hospitals across the nation for safety. In April, the Leapfrog Group rated BMC with another Straight "A" grade for patient safety, placing it among only 49 hospitals in the nation to have achieved Straight "A" grades since the inception of Leapfrog's patient safety grading system in 2012.
"The physicians, nurses and staff of Berkshire Medical Center work together as a team to achieve excellence in patient safety and outstanding clinical care," said David Phelps, president and chief executive officer of Berkshire Health Systems. "Every member of our care team should be proud of this ongoing validation of the high level of care they provide our community."
During the 2014 to 2016 study period, Healthgrades found that patients treated in hospitals receiving the Patient Safety Excellence Award were, on average:
* 55.6 percent less likely to experience an accidental cut, puncture, perforation or hemorrhage during medical care, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals;
* 52.4 percent less likely to experience a collapsed lung due to a procedure or surgery in or around the chest, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals;
* 62.8 percent less likely to experience catheter-related bloodstream infections acquired at the hospital, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals; and
* 54.3 percent less likely to experience pressure sores or bed sores acquired in the hospital, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals.
During the study period, Healthgrades 2018 Patient Safety Excellence Award recipient hospitals demonstrated excellent performance in safety provided for patients in the Medicare population, as measured by objective outcomes (risk-adjusted patient safety indicator rates) for 13 patient safety indicators defined by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.
If all hospitals achieved the average performance of award recipients for each of the 13 Patient Safety Indicators evaluated, during the 2014 to 2016 study period, 126,342 patient safety events could have been avoided.
"We applaud the hospitals who have received the Healthgrades 2018 Patient Safety Excellence Award," said Dr. Brad Bowman, chief medical officer of Healthgrades. "Their dedication and commitment to providing safe care creates tangible results for patients."
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