Which New Jersey Hospitals Are The Safest? Here Are The Results Of A New National Survey

Which New Jersey Hospitals Are The Safest? Here Are The Results Of A New National Survey

April 25 | 10:27 AM

Fewer hospitals in New Jersey earned an "A" for patient safety in the latest national report card released Tuesday. 

That drove New Jersey's national rank down from 11th to 17th best for the strategies they used to prevent infections, falls and other harmful mistakes, according to the report. 

Just 22 of the 65 hospitals graded earned an A compared to the 30 hospitals that aced the survey in October, the report said.

The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades, released twice a year since 2012, was developed in the wake of a landmark 1999 report by the Institute of Medicine that revealed hospital errors kill about 98,000 patients a year. The survey doesn't measure a doctor's care, but rather how safe the hospital has kept a patient while receiving that care.

Although some hospitals have criticized the survey as too simplistic and reliant on dated information, Leapfrog's report card has become a widely tool to educate the public, prod poor-performing hospitals to improve and reward high-achievers which proudly use their A's in marketing campaigns.

Here's what you need to know about New Jersey hospitals based on the newest report:

How New Jersey compares to the rest of the U.S.

Leapfrog graded 2,500 hospitals for this report.

Hawaii, Idaho, Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Virginia ranked in the top five, while North Dakota, Delaware, Alaska, which had no "A" hospitals, tied for last. New York and Maryland ranked just above them. 

"The national numbers on death and harm in hospitals have alarmed us for decades," said Leah Binder, Leapfrog's CEO and president. "What we see in the new round of Safety Grades are signs of many hospitals making significant improvements in their patient safety record. Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades have definitely spurred these improvement efforts."

A dozen New Jersey hospitals improved and 15 hospitals slipped one or two grades, in the latest report.

The Top 22

Of the 65 hospitals Leapfrog graded in New Jersey, 22 earned an A, down from 30 hospitals last fall.

* Bayshore Medical Center, Holmdel;

* Capital Health Medical Center – Hopewell;

* CarePoint Health – Bayonne Medical Center;

* Clara Maass Medical Center, Belleville;

* Hackensack University Medical Center;

* Holy Name Medical Center, Teaneck;

* Inspira Medical Center, Vineland;

* Jefferson Stratford Hospital;

* Jefferson Washington Township Hospital;

* Jersey Shore University Medical Center, Neptune;

* Monmouth Medical Center, Long Branch;

* Morristown Medical Center;

* Newton Medical Center;

* Overlook Medical Center, Summit;

* Riverview Medical Center, Red Bank;

* Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital at Hamilton;

* Saint Barnabas Medical Center, Livingston;

* Shore Medical Center, Somers Point;

* The Valley Hospital, Ridgewood;

* University Medical Center of Princeton at Plainsboro;

* Virtua Marlton Hospital;

* Virtua Voorhees Hospital.

Near the top

There hospitals earned a B:

* Atlantic Regional Medical Center, Atlantic City;

* Atlantic Regional Medical Center, Pomona;

* Cape Regional Medical Center, Cape May Courthouse;

* Capital Health Regional Medical Center, Trenton;

* CarePoint Health, Hoboken University Medical Center;

* CentraState Medical Center, Freehold;

* Chilton Medical Center, Pompton Plains;

* Community Medical Center, Toms River;

* Englewood Hospital and Medical Center;

* Hunterdon Medical Center, Flemington;

* Inspira Medical Center Woodbury;

* Jefferson Cherry Hill Hospital;

* Jersey City Medical Center;

* JFK Medical Center, Edison;

* Newark Beth Israel Medical Center;

* Ocean Medical Center, Brick;

* Our Lady of Lourdes Medical Center, Camden;

* Raritan Bay Medical Center, Perth Amboy;

* Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, New Brunswick;

* Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital-Somerset, Somerville;

* Saint Peter's University Hospital, New Brunswick;

* Southern Ocean Medical Center, Manahawkin;

* St. Francis Medical Center, Trenton;

* St. Mary's General Hospital, Passaic.

There hospitals earned a B:

* Atlantic Regional Medical Center, Atlantic City;

* Atlantic Regional Medical Center, Pomona;

* Cape Regional Medical Center, Cape May Courthouse;

* Capital Health Regional Medical Center, Trenton;

* CarePoint Health, Hoboken University Medical Center;

* CentraState Medical Center, Freehold;

* Chilton Medical Center, Pompton Plains;

* Community Medical Center, Toms River;

* Englewood Hospital and Medical Center;

* Hunterdon Medical Center, Flemington;

* Inspira Medical Center Woodbury;

* Jefferson Cherry Hill Hospital;

* Jersey City Medical Center;

* JFK Medical Center, Edison;

* Newark Beth Israel Medical Center;

* Ocean Medical Center, Brick;

* Our Lady of Lourdes Medical Center, Camden;

* Raritan Bay Medical Center, Perth Amboy;

* Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, New Brunswick;

* Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital-Somerset, Somerville;

* Saint Peter's University Hospital, New Brunswick;

* Southern Ocean Medical Center, Manahawkin;

* St. Francis Medical Center, Trenton;

* St. Mary's General Hospital, Passaic.

Original Article