Every year The Leapfrog Group conducts a survey comparing hospital performances across the nation based on standards of safety, quality and efficiency. This year they have added hospitals with Magnet(r) recognition from the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) as facilities that demonstrate nursing excellence. The organization has included this data noting the key roles nurses play in patient safety.
The Leapfrog Group is a coalition of public and private purchasers of employee health benefits working toward improvements in health care safety, quality and affordability.
Among the hospitals accredited with the Magnet(r) designation and recognized in the 2011 Leapfrog survey are seven HCA affiliates:
- Frankfort Regional Medical Center, Frankfort, Ky.
- LewisGale Hospital at Montgomery, Blacksburg, Va.
- Medical Center of Aurora, Aurora, Colo.
- Medical Center of Plano, Plano, Texas
- Medical City Dallas Hospital
- Plaza Medical Center of Fort Worth
- Reston Hospital Center, Reston, Va.
Our nurses are responsible for the accreditation. Their efforts mark the persistent drive HCA puts forth in ensuring quality care to our patients and what makes us number one in health care services in the country. The crucial role our nursing staff plays at these hospitals hasn't gone unnoticed by Leapfrog's CEO who said at an AARP Champion Nursing Council and Coalition Meeting in Washington, DC, "With this addition to our annual survey, Leapfrog is recognizing the vital role nurses play in patient safety and their strong commitment to transparency. As I visit hospitals across the country, I am constantly finding that the highest performing hospitals, many of Leapfrog's Top Hospitals, have earned the prestigious recognition of Magnet(r) and nurses are the most vocal supporters of making patient safety and quality information transparent. Our employer members value this designation, and its implications for safety, and believe hospitals deserve recognition when they achieve it."
The Magnet(r) Program was actually developed by the ANCC to express recognition of excellence in nursing. When it comes to disseminating successful nursing practices and strategies to encourage quality patient care, nursing excellence and innovations in nursing practices, the Magnet(r) recognition becomes a critical vehicle.
All of the HCA hospitals recognized in the Leapfrog Hospital Survey carrying the Magnet(r) Recognition automatically earn full credit for Safe Practice #9 Nursing Workforce. This scores hospitals' commitment to staffing highly qualified nurses and putting deserved nurses in leadership positions and allowing them to offer substantial input into patient safety issues. The free survey is open to every acute-care hospital in the country.