Employees from Colquitt Regional Medical Center pause for a moment to celebrate receiving another ‘A’ for their Hospital Safety Grade. This is the ninth consecutive ‘A’ received by Colquitt Regional.

MOULTRIE, Ga. — Colquitt Regional was awarded an “A” from The Leapfrog Group’s Fall 2018 Hospital Safety Grade — its ninth such score in a row.

The designation recognizes Colquitt Regional’s efforts in protecting patients from harm and meeting the highest safety standards in the United States, the hospital said. The Leapfrog Group is a national organization committed to improving health care quality and safety for consumers and purchasers. The Safety Grade assigns an A, B, C, D or F grade to hospitals across the country based on their performance in preventing medical errors, infections and other harms among patients in their care.

“I am proud of our staff for earning our ninth ‘A’ rating,” said Colquitt Regional President and CEO Jim Matney. “An ‘A’ Hospital Safety Score has now become a part of our culture and our patients should expect nothing less. Patient safety is a priority at Colquitt Regional and I commend every member of our team who works hard to deliver safe and exceptional care each day.”

Maureen Yearta recently took over as chairman of the Colquitt Regional Hospital Authority and said she is not surprised by this rating.  

“Prior to being named chairman of the full board, I served as chairman of the Quality Committee for several years and I know how diligently the staff train to ensure that patients receive a safe hospital experience from every employee, every time,” Yearta said. “They are constantly talking about patient safety measures and evaluating and re-evaluating processes.”

Leapfrog’s Hospital Safety Grades recognize hospitals like Colquitt Regional Medical Center that focus on advancing patient safety, said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group.

“This ranking provides an important resource for patients, and a benchmark for hospitals, to determine how care at one hospital compares to others in a region,” Binder said. “Hospitals that earn an ‘A’ Hospital Safety Grade deserve to be recognized for their efforts in preventing medical harm and errors.”

Developed under the guidance of a National Expert Panel, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses 28 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign grades to more than 2,600 U.S. hospitals twice per year. Colquitt Regional received its first ‘A’ rating in the fall of 2014 and has earned an ‘A’ for each subsequent period. It is the only hospital in South Georgia to achieve nine ‘A’s in a row. The Hospital Safety Grade’s methodology is peer-reviewed and fully transparent, and the results are free to the public.

Colquitt Regional was one of 855 across the United States awarded an A in the Fall 2018 update of grades. To see Colquitt Regional’s full grade details, and to access patient tips for staying safe in the hospital, visit www.hospitalsafetygrade.org and follow The Leapfrog Group on Twitter and Facebook.