St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children, Only Hospital in Pennsylvania to be Awarded Coveted 2014 Leapfrog Top Hospital Distinction

Philadelphia, PA, December 04, 2014 --(PR.com)-- St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children, located in Philadelphia, PA, is proud to announce that The Leapfrog Group has named the hospital to its annual list of Top Hospitals. An elite distinction awarded to hospitals nationwide for demonstrating excellence in hospital safety and quality through the Leapfrog Hospital Survey, the Leapfrog Top Hospital award is given to less than seven percent of all eligible hospitals. The awards, which are given annually, will be announced at Leapfrog’s Annual Meeting and Top Hospital Awards on December 2, in Washington, D.C. St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children is the only hospital, pediatric or adult, in Pennsylvania to receive this coveted award.

According to Leapfrog, a children’s hospital must achieve a Quality Score of 90 or better (top decile) as calculated through Leapfrog’s Hospital Recognition Program. The Leapfrog Hospital Recognition Program uses standards from the Leapfrog Hospital Survey to calculate an overall quality score for each children’s hospital. The quality score, which is a numerical value from 0 to 100, includes Leapfrog’s standards for preventing medication errors (CPOE), ICU Physician Staffing, Safe Practices, Never Events, and in some cases preventing hospital-acquired conditions such as infections. Hospitals with high quality scores have demonstrated strict adherence to Leapfrog’s safety and quality standards. The Leapfrog website provides specific details about these calculations (www.leapfroggroup.org/competitivebenchmarking).

Carolyn Jackson, CEO of St. Christopher’s, says that providing high quality, safe care to children in Philadelphia and the region has been the primary focus since the hospital opened its doors in 1875.

“At St. Christopher’s, we know that all parents want their children to be cared for in an environment that provides the safest, highest quality care possible. We are dedicated to providing that care in a family-centered manner for each and every child,” says Jackson. “The Leapfrog Top Hospital award is an extremely distinguished honor that is widely recognized as one of the most prestigious awards that a hospital can receive. It truly exemplifies St. Christopher’s excellence in quality care and patient safety, and our continued goal for improvement in those areas.”

St. Christopher’s was one of 94 Top Hospitals recognized nationally and the only hospital in Pennsylvania to be recognized. The list includes:
· 9 Top Children’s Hospitals
· 24 Top Rural Hospitals
· 61 Top Urban Hospitals

The selection is based on the results of The Leapfrog Group’s annual hospital survey, which measures hospitals’ performance on patient safety and quality, focusing on three critical areas of hospital care: how patients fare, resource use and management structures established to prevent errors. Performance across many areas of hospital care is considered in establishing the qualifications for the award, including rates for high-risk procedures and a hospital’s ability to prevent medication errors.

The Top Hospital award is not given to a set number of hospitals, but rather, to all urban, rural and children's hospitals that meet the high standards defined in each year's Top Hospitals Methodology.

To see the full list of institutions honored as a 2014 Top Hospital, please visit www.leapfroggroup.org/tophospitals.