How safe is your surgery center? Bay Area hospitals graded

TAMPA - The grades are in for hospitals in the Bay Area. Leapfrog, a national independent nonprofit, released its new rankings this week.

Some hospitals went up a grade, and some major hospitals downgraded this year.

Leapfrog issues grades based on more than a dozen factors, like in-house infection rates, wound care, patient falls, surgery success, and things as simple as handwashing.

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"Florida did really an incredible job that ranked number 12 in the nation," said Alex Campione, Leapfrog Safety Grade Analyst. "What's so impressive about Tampa is there's about 3 million people living in the metro area, and you have 29 hospitals. So that makes you the highest ranked metro area among those very large metro areas. And there were no D or F grades."

Orlando Health Bayfront Hospital in St. Petersburg moved from a "C" to a "B" this year.

"Leapfrog actually has taken a very interesting approach to evaluating hospital safety. I think what they've pulled in to evaluate hospitals is very reasonable," James Tucker, Chief Planning Officer at Bayfront Hospital. "It's been a focus on driving down infections and complications, improving the patient experience, improving communication, being committed to a culture of safety and quality."

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The area’s biggest hospital, Tampa General Hospital, went from a "B" to a "C." TGH sent FOX 13 a statement saying in part:

"Patient safety and quality outcomes are Tampa General Hospital’s top priority, and multiple, trusted third-party analyses serve as confirmation of this commitment. Tampa General is consistently ranked among the nation’s best hospitals by U.S. News and World Report … Unfortunately, the Leapfrog Group does not account for the complex conditions that are common at Tampa General and … we know that the current grade is not a real time reflection of our outcomes."

Leapfrog tells us Tampa Bay hospitals ranked 16th in the nation for best safety grades. They say with more than 500 people dying each day in the U.S. from problems or mistakes in the hospital, these grades should be taken seriously.

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