Hospital Safety: How Morristown Medical Center Ranks

MORRISTOWN, NJ — Morristown Medical Center was among 22 New Jersey hospitals that received an “A” grade from the not-for-profit healthcare watchdog, Leapfrog.

The organization completed its fall 2022 Hospital Safety Grade of 2,884 facilities, 33 in New Jersey receiving an “A,” 20 given a “B,” 14 receiving a “C,” and three given a “D.” There were no New Jersey hospitals that were “F” rated.

The group uses an academic grading scale with five letter grades to score nearly 3,000 hospitals nationwide on more than 30 measures of patient safety. Leapfrog says its hospital rating system is the only one in the country focusing solely on a hospital’s ability to protect patients from preventable errors.

Read More: NJ Safest Hospitals: Latest Ratings Released For Fall

Leapfrog gave Morristown Medical Center in Morristown its 15th consecutive "A" ranking. Summit's Overlook Medical Center, which is a part of the Atlantic Health System along with Morristown, also received an "A" rating.

“Patient safety is always an essential part of the extraordinary care our dedicated team delivers to patients and families every day at Morristown Medical Center. I am so proud of our organization’s recognition and that our hospital has sustained the “A” grade 15 times since the Fall of 2015. This is also a reflection of our amazing physicians, nurses and other caregivers who always rise to every challenge. Thank you to The Leapfrog Group for recognizing the incredible work that goes into earning this “A” grade,” Trish O’Keefe, Senior Vice President & Chief Nurse Executive, Atlantic Health System and President, Morristown Medical Center said.

Morristown Medical Center ranked as above average in almost every category that Leapfrog assessed. The hospital only fell below above average in the safety section, reporting an average amount of dangerous bed sores.

The hospital ranks highly in practices to prevent errors, except when it comes to communication about medicines and handwashing. The doctors, nurses and hospital staff also rank highly, again except in terms of responsiveness of hospital staff and communication with doctors.

Since 2012, Leapfrog has released Safety Grades twice per year, and Morristown Medical Center has received an "A" the past 15 times in a row.

According to Leapfrog, the letter grade signifies a hospital's overall performance in keeping patients safe from preventable harm and medical errors. The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade methodology has been peer-reviewed and published in the Journal of Patient Safety.

You can see Morristown Medical Center's full results here.

The article has been updated to include a statement from Morristown Medical Center President Trish O'Keefe.