Florida Hospitals Earn A Grade for Patient Safety in April 2016 Hospital Safety Score

VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla., May 2, 2016 National patient safety organization The Leapfrog Group has released new Hospital Safety Scores which assign A, B, C, D and F letter grades to hospitals nationwide and provide the most complete picture of patient safety in the U.S. health care system.

Florida Hospital DeLand in DeLand, Florida Hospital Fish Memorial in Orange City and Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center in Daytona Beach were the only hospitals in Volusia County to earn an A, ranking among the safest hospitals in the United States.

Only 798 hospitals in the nation received an A and Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center is one of a few hospitals nationwide to earn nine straight As since the Hospital Safety Scores inception in 2012.

We are so proud of these scores, as they reflect the hard work and dedication of our staff. It is extremely difficult to earn the A rating, so this recognition is very meaningful to us and our team, said Rob Fulbright, Florida Hospital East Florida Region CEO. At all of our hospitals in Volusia and Flagler counties, we continuously look for opportunities to improve our patients care and experience as part of our mission to extend the healing ministry of Christ.

Avoidable deaths in hospitals should be the number one concern of our health care leaders. Hospitals that earn an A from Leapfrog are leaders in saving lives, and we commend them and urge their continued vigilance, said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group.

Developed under the guidance of Leapfrogs Blue Ribbon Expert Panel, the Hospital Safety Score uses 30 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign A, B, C, D and F grades to more than 2,500 U.S. hospitals twice per year. It is calculated by top patient safety experts, peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public.

For the first time, the Hospital Safety Score includes five measures of patient-reported experience with the hospital as well as two of the most common infections, C.diff and MRSA.

About The Leapfrog Group

Founded in 2000 by large employers and other purchasers, The Leapfrog Group is a national nonprofit organization driving a movement for giant leaps forward in the quality and safety of American health care. The flagship Leapfrog Hospital Survey collects and transparently reports hospital performance, empowering purchasers to find the highest-value care and giving consumers the lifesaving information they need to make informed decisions. Hospital Safety Score, Leapfrogs other main initiative, assigns letter grades to hospitals based on their record of patient safety, helping consumers protect themselves and their families from errors, injuries, accidents, and infections.

About Florida Hospital East Florida Region

A member of Adventist Health System, Florida Hospitals mission is to extend the healing ministry of Christ. Encompassing six Florida Hospitals in Volusia and Flagler counties, the Florida Hospital East Florida Region is the largest hospital system in the area, with 899 beds and nearly 5,900 employees. The Florida Hospital East Florida Region includes Florida Hospital DeLand in DeLand, Florida Hospital Fish Memorial in Orange City, Florida Hospital Flagler in Palm Coast, Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center in Daytona Beach, and Florida Hospital Oceanside in Ormond Beach. In April 2016, the sixth facility was added to the Florida Hospital East Florida Region family: Florida Hospital New Smyrna (formerly Bert Fish Medical Center) in New Smyrna Beach.