SVMC Earns “A” Rating for Safety from Leapfrog

BENNINGTON, VT—December 19, 2019—Southwestern Vermont Medical Center (SVMC), part of Southwestern Vermont Health Care (SVHC), earned an ‘A’ for hospital safety from the Leapfrog Group. The national distinction recognizes SVMC’s achievements protecting patients from harm and providing safer health care.

“This recognition is a reflection on the diligent professionals we have working in patients’ best interests every day,” said Thomas A. Dee, FACHE, SVHC’s president and CEO. “We are proud to share this news.”

The Leapfrog Group is an independent national watchdog organization driven by employers and other purchasers of health care. The organization is committed to improving health care quality and safety for consumers and purchasers. The Safety Grade assigns an ‘A’, ‘B’, ‘C’, ‘D’ or ‘F’ grade to all general hospitals across the country based on their performance in preventing medical errors, injuries, accidents, infections and other harms to patients in their care.

“‘A’ hospitals show us their leadership is protecting patients from preventable medical harm and error,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “It takes genuine commitment at every level—from clinicians to administrators to the board of directors—and we congratulate the teams who have worked so hard to earn this A.”

Developed under the guidance of a national Expert Panel, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses 28 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign grades to more than 2,600 U.S. acute-care hospitals twice each year. The Hospital Safety Grade’s methodology is peer-reviewed and fully transparent, and the results are free to the public.

SVMC was awarded an ‘A’ grade, when Leapfrog announced grades for the fall 2019 update. To see SVMC’s full grade details, learn how employers can help, and access patient tips for staying safe in the hospital, visit hospitalsafetygrade.org and follow The Leapfrog Group on Twitter and Facebook.

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. The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, Leapfrog’s 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 SVHC:
Southwestern Vermont Health Care (SVHC) is a comprehensive, preeminent, health care system providing exceptional, convenient, and affordable care to the communities of Bennington and Windham Counties of Vermont, eastern Rensselaer and Washington Counties of New York, and northern Berkshire County in Massachusetts. SVHC includes Southwestern Vermont Medical Center (SVMC), Southwestern Vermont Regional Cancer Center, the Centers for Living and Rehabilitation, and the SVHC Foundation. SVMC includes 25 primary and specialty care practices. For more information, visit svhealthcare.org.

Southwestern Vermont Medical Center provides exceptional care without discriminating on the basis of an individual’s age, race, ethnicity, religion, culture, language, physical or mental disability, socioeconomic status, sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression. Language assistance services, free of charge, are available at 1-800-367-9559.