CARIBOU, Maine — Cary Medical Center was awarded an ‘A’ in the spring 2021 Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, a national distinction recognizing Cary’s achievements providing safer health care. The Leapfrog Group is an independent national watchdog organization committed to health care quality and safety.
The Safety Grade is a letter grade assigned to all general hospitals across the country and updated every six months, assessing how well the hospital prevents medical errors and other harms to patients.
Kris Doody, RN, and chief executive officer at Cary Medical Center said that the hospital continues to gain national recognition for patient safety and quality of care.
“We have consistently received an ‘A’ Grade from the Leapfrog Group”, said Doody. “Such recognition is a great tribute to our staff and their commitment to high standards of care. Given the challenges of this past year with the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s award is particularly impressive and we are so proud of our entire staff of making it possible”.
Doody’s statement was echoed by Leah Binder, president and CEO of the Leapfrog Group.
“As the nation copes with a challenging pandemic, our gratitude.extends to hospital leadership and health care workers everywhere for their tremendous dedication,” said Binder. “We hope this ‘A’ helps to thank the people who work and volunteer for Cary Medical Center. They are role models in putting patients first, and their service has been extraordinary in our country’s time of need.”
Developed under the guidance of a national Expert Panel, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses up to 28 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign grades to more than 2,600 U.S. acute-care hospitals twice per year. The Hospital Safety Grade’s methodology is peer-reviewed and fully transparent, and the results are free to the public.
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 and new Leapfrog Ambulatory Surgery Center Survey collect and transparently report hospital and ASC 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.
