| Fairview & BMC Honored for Patient Safety Achievements |
| December 5, 2012 For Immediate Release Berkshire Health Systems Hospitals Honored Nationally for Patient Safety Berkshire Health Systems hospitals achieved high marks for patient safety from the Leapfrog Group, an independent national group that grades hospitals on preventable medical errors, injuries, accidents and infections. Fairview Hospital has been named a 2012 Leapfrog Top Rural Hospital, and Berkshire Medical Center has been honored with an “A” Hospital Safety Score. Fairview Hospital was selected as a Top Hospital out of nearly 1,200 hospitals participating in Leapfrog’s annual survey. Fairview was one of only 11 rural hospitals awarded Top Hospital ranking. BMC’s “A” score was awarded in the latest update to the Hospital Safety Score, which assigns hospitals with grades from A to F on patient safety issues. “Achieving the high rankings that both BMC and Fairview have attained in patient safety is the result of intensive efforts by our clinicians and quality teams, who have developed comprehensive processes designed to ensure the safest environment for all of our patients,” said David Phelps, President and CEO of Berkshire Health Systems. “Our community can be confident that the care they receive right here at home is second to none.” “This is a great honor for Fairview Hospital, especially as we celebrate 100 years of caring with our Centennial Celebration in 2013,” said Anthony Rinaldi, Executive Vice President of Fairview. “It is a tribute to the hard work and dedication of many people throughout the hospital and Berkshire Health Systems. We thank our staff and physicians, our Board of Trustees, our community, and all who have invested their efforts in making Fairview a healthcare resource we can all count on.” “BMC voluntarily participates in this rigorous analysis of our patient safety programs, which we continually improve upon to provide our community with the best and safest care possible,” said Diane Kelly, RN, BMC Chief Operating Officer. “This is a testament to the dedication of our entire staff and an organization that never stops working on improvement.” The selection of Fairview as a Top Hospital is based on the results of the Leapfrog Group’s annual hospital survey, which measures hospitals’ performance on patient safety and quality, focusing on three critical areas of hospital care: how patients fare, resource use, and management structures in place to prevent errors. The results of the survey are posted on a website (http://www.leapfroggroup.org/cp) open to patients and families, the public, employers, and other purchasers of healthcare. Calculated under the guidance of the Leapfrog Group’s nine-member Blue Ribbon Expert Panel, the Hospital Safety Score that graded BMC with an “A” grade uses 26 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to produce a single score representing a hospital’s overall capacity to keep patients safe from infections, injuries, and medical and medication errors. About The Leapfrog Group The Leapfrog Group (www.leapfroggroup.org) is a national nonprofit organization using the collective leverage of large purchasers of health care to initiate breakthrough improvements in the safety, quality, and affordability of health care for Americans. The flagship Leapfrog Hospital Survey allows purchasers to structure their contracts and purchasing to reward the highest performing hospitals. The Leapfrog Group was founded in November 2000 with support from the Business Roundtable and national funders, and is now independently operated with support from its purchaser and other members. |
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