Hospitals Earn Top Patient Safety Scores

Annie Penn Hospital earns its seventh “A” in a row.

Greensboro — Alamance Regional Medical Center, Annie Penn Hospital and The Moses H. Cone Memorial Hospital earn “A” grades in the Fall 2021 Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades. The distinction looks at how hospitals protect patients from harm and provide safer health care.

Hospital care is extremely complex. Thousands of patients experience falls, infections or medical errors in hospitals across the nation every year. Hospitals that earn “A” grades have far fewer patient safety “events” than hospitals with “D” or “F” grades.   

“High-quality care means better care and safer care,” says Kenneth Rempher, PhD, RN, chief nurse executive, Cone Health. “You build a culture of safety. And we are building that in every hospital, MedCenter, clinic and physician office that is part of Cone Health.”

 The “A” grade is the fifth consecutive ‘A’ for Alamance Regional Medical Center in Burlington and the seventh for Annie Penn Hospital in Reidsville. The Moses H. Cone Memorial Hospital moved up from the “B” grade it held in the spring. Wesley Long Hospital rose to a “B.” Specialty hospitals, such as Cone Health Behavioral Health Hospital, are not graded by Leapfrog Group.

The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade is the only hospital ratings program based exclusively on hospital prevention of medical errors and harms to patients. The grading system is peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public. Grades are updated twice annually, in the fall and spring.

“An ‘A’ safety grade is a tremendous achievement, of which this community should be extremely proud,” says Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “I thank the leadership and workforce of Cone Health for its commitment to prioritizing patients and their safety, especially during these trying times.”