Three Vanderbilt hospitals have been recognized by the Leapfrog group as among the safest in the United States.

Vanderbilt University Hospital (VUH), Vanderbilt Bedford Hospital (VBH) and Vanderbilt Wilson County Hospital (VWCH) all received a fall 2023 safety grade of “A.”

Leapfrog is a coalition of public and private purchasers of employee health coverage that works to encourage health care safety, quality and affordability.

Leapfrog’s Hospital Safety Score uses numerous measures of hospital data to produce a single score representing a hospital’s overall capacity to keep patients safe from infections, injuries and medical errors, as well as the systems hospitals have in place to prevent harm.

“I am delighted that multiple hospitals have earned an ‘A’ Safety Grade. These scores reflect the solemn commitment of the physicians, nurses and staff working throughout our health system to always place patients at the center of care,” said C. Wright Pinson, MBA, MD, Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Chief Health System Officer for Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

Leapfrog’s measures come from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), secondary data sources and the Leapfrog Hospital Survey, which VUMC completes annually to evaluate systems and processes in place to support outcomes. This extensive survey includes things such as an assessment of whether a culture of safety survey is done every two years, use of barcode medication administration, test of the computer order entry system, etc.

The measures are weighted and then combined to produce a single composite score that is published as an A, B, C, D or F letter grade.

To determine a safety grade, Leapfrog not only looks at outcome measures, but also processes measures such as staff responsiveness and structural measures like the overall hospital environment and how thoroughly technology is embedded into the delivery of care.

“Earning an ‘A’ Grade means that these Vanderbilt hospitals made a true commitment to put patients first,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “We congratulate the leadership, clinicians, staff and volunteers that all had a role to play in this achievement.”