Thrive Alabama shared its thoughts on the failing grade Huntsville Hospital received from a national non-profit. Huntsville Hospital rejected the findings of a health care provider safety report that levied a failing grade on the region’s largest medical facility and said it was in part because the hospital chose not to complete an extensive survey.

They scored highly on communication practices but scored average or subpar on many of the safety measures involving harmful events. They declined to report on effective leadership, staff cooperation and bedside care for patients.

Thrive Alabama’s CEO, Mary Elizabeth Marr, says patient safety in any medical setting is critical, regardless of what you’re there to do. “There are so many protocols that are in place, and those are there for a reason. It’s extremely important to make sure that you are following protocols at all times with sharps, with any equipment that you’re using, and then, again, with talking with the patient and treating them in a respectable manner.”

Marr also notes that many of the safety hazards can be things you don’t even notice. “Making sure that you have a clean environment because, of course, germs can form. But there are safety hazards, things in the hallway that you don’t think about. And you never know what little things are going to happen.”

As for Huntsville Hospital,

the report by the non-profit Leapfrog organization

applied letter grades across 32 categories, and an overall grade for each rated facility. Huntsville Hospital received an overall “F” rating.

The report noted that the hospital’s decision not to submit certain information factored into the low grade.

Huntsville Hospital has provided FOX54 with the following response, which is included below in its entirety:

The Leapfrog survey is not an accurate measure of patient safety at Huntsville Hospital. The hospital did not complete this voluntary 353-page survey, yet Leapfrog chose to publish a rating with incomplete information. This process is unfair to the thousands of dedicated clinicians working around the clock to care for the community and respond to emergencies anytime they are called.

Huntsville Hospital is consistently ranked by US News as the second-best hospital in Alabama (

https://health.usnews.com/best-hospitals/area/al

). The hospital is fully accredited by the Joint Commission, the gold standard for hospital quality and safety, holding hospitals accountable for over 250 standards measured in person by a seven-person survey team. Forbes considers HH one of the best employers in Alabama and Newsweek named HH one of America’s Greatest Workplaces for Women. HH’s cardiac surgery programs was recognized by Healthgrades as one of America’s 50 best programs seven years in a row. HH is a certified stroke center and accredited by the American College of Surgeon’s Commission on Cancer. Blue Cross and Blue Shield recognizes HH for distinction in cardiac care, spine surgery, bariatric surgery, and maternity care. Every employee and physician in the HH Health System completes mandatory training in patient safety and high reliability. HH excels in most quality ratings and scores poorly in a Leapfrog survey that it does not complete.

Huntsville Hospital takes care of the sickest patients in north Alabama and southern Tennessee. Mortality ratings referenced in the Leapfrog survey fail to account for the severity of illness managed by hospitals that accept transfers of patients needing the highest level of care. To ensure we are providing these patients the best possible care, Huntsville Hospital dedicates significant resources to specialty specific clinical databases including the Society of Thoracic Surgery, American College of Cardiology NCDR Registry, Vermont Oxford neonatology database, National Surgical Quality Improvement Program, National Trauma database, and Cancer Registry.

The perception of this matter is not lost on us. Going forward, Huntsville Hospital and Madison Hospital will add the significant resources that are required to complete a survey of Leapfrog’s scope. While we would rather have these staff members taking care of patients, and we recognize that Leapfrog may not be the best indicator of hospital quality, allowing an organization to suggest we do not prioritize patient safety is an [affront] to dedicated care givers and first responders working around the clock to make Huntsville a better place to live.


PREVIOUSLY:

Huntsville Hospital has received a failing safety score from a nationwide non-profit organization. The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade has given the hospital an overall “F,” which came after the hospital declined to participate in the grading survey or provide data.

In the report, Huntsville Hospital scored in the highest tier, “Better Than Average,” one time — for not leaving objects in a patient’s body after surgery. The hospital rated “Average” in 12 categories and “Worse Than Average” 16 times. Because the hospital declined to participate in the process, it was not scored in three categories.

Last year, the hospital rated a “D” in both the spring and fall assessments, and in 2023, it held a “C.” Huntsville Hospital has not responded to FOX54 about the new failing safety grade.