ICYMI: 29 Tampa Bay Area Hospitals Graded on Patient Safety

TAMPA, FL — Six Tampa Bay area hospitals received an "A" with new safety grades released Monday by the nonprofit Leapfrog Group. There were 29 hospitals in the region that were graded. Fourteen received either a "C" or a "D." There were no "F" grades in the area.

The Leapfrog Group uses "30 evidence-based measures of patient safety" including patient injuries, accidents and infections. Numerical scores are converted into letter grades. Of more than 2,600 hospitals graded nationwide, there were 844 "A" grade hospitals and only 20 "F" grade hospitals. Leapfrog is a nonprofit founded by large employers in 2000 to improve health care quality and safety.

Top performers included Mease Dunedin Hospital, Florida Hospital North Pinellas, Florida Hospital Carrollwood, Sarasota Memorial Hospital, Doctors Hospital of Sarasota and Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel. Two hospitals in the area received "D" grades: Manatee Memorial Hospital and Venice Regional Bayfront Hospital.

Florida ranked 32nd when comparing states with the highest percentage of grade "A" hospitals. States that have shown improvement have put a priority on safety, says Leapfrog President and CEO Leah Binder.

“In the fast-changing health care landscape, patients should be aware that hospitals are not all equally competent at protecting them from injuries and infections," she said in a statement. "We believe everyone has the right to know which hospitals are the safest and encourage community members to call on their local hospitals to change, and on their elected officials to spur them to action."

See States Ranked Best to Worst in Hospital Safety

Leapfrog's grades aren't the only ratings that consumers can use to hold local hospitals accountable. Some of the data used by Leapfrog comes from federal measurements shared at Medicare's "Hospital Compare" website. On that site, hospitals are given 1- to 5-star ratings.

Here are the Florida hospital grades from Leapfrog:

• Blake Medical Center, C
• Brandon Regional Hospital, B
• Doctors Hospital of Sarasota, A
• Florida Hospital Carrollwood, A
• Florida Hospital North Pinellas, A
• Florida Hospital Tampa, B
• Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel, A
• Florida Hospital Zephyrhills, B
• Lakeland Regional Medical Center, B
• Largo Medical Center, B
• Largo Medical Center ‐ Indian Rocks, C
• Manatee Memorial Hospital, D
• Mease Dunedin Hospital, A
• Medical Center of Trinity, C
• Memorial Hospital of Tampa, C
• Morton Plant North Bay Hospital, B
• Northside Hospital, C
• Palms of Pasadena Hospital, C
• Regional Medical Center Bayonet Point, C
• Sarasota Memorial Hospital, A
• South Bay Hospital, C
• South Florida Baptist Hospital, B
• St. Anthony's Hospital, C
• St. Joseph's Hospital, B
• St. Joseph's Hospital North, B
• St. Petersburg General Hospital, C
• Tampa Community Hospital, C
• Tampa General Hospital, C
• Venice Regional Bayfront Health, D

See more about the safety grades, including the methodology.

Image via Shuttestock