Leapfrog: 1 in 5 hospitals won't commit to ending medical errors
One in six reporting hospitals have higher infection rates for central line infections.
Though many hospitals are trying their best to become more transparent, one in five hospitals will not commit to a policy to combat events that should never happen in a hospital, group says.
Though many hospitals are trying their best to become more transparent, one in five hospitals will not commit to a policy to combat events that should never happen in a hospital, according to The Leapfrog Group.
According to the nonprofit ratings firm, the rate of hospitals meeting Leapfrog's standard has remained at 79 percent from 2012 to 2014, meaning one in five hospitals won't commit to fix problems tied to errors.
The results, analyzed by Castlight Health, reveal several other areas of needed improvement.
[Also: 20 hospitals fail Leapfrog safety ratings (list)]
One in six reporting hospitals have higher infection rates for central line infections and one in 10 perform poorly in preventing catheter-associated urinary tract infections, according to the report.
Urban hospitals continue to outperform rural hospitals. About 20 percent more urban hospitals met Leapfrog's standard for safe practices and showed greater year-over-year improvement, the report states. Studies show meeting the standard can reduce ICU mortality by 40 percent.
The report calls for more hospitals to report to the survey.
[Also: How many hospitals earned a Leapfrog and Healthgrades safety award? 142, that's all]
In 2014, the year for which the study is based, 1,501 U.S. hospitals voluntarily completed the Leapfrog Hospital Survey, the highest recorded participation to date.
The most recent report released July 9 is the last in a series of six reports examining key quality and safety measures at hospitals nationwide.
Twitter: @SusanMorseHFN
