Hand-washing, patient falls among safety concerns in metro-east, St. Louis hospitals

Hand-washing, patient falls and injuries and collapsed lungs were cited as areas of concern for metro-east area hospitals this autumn, according to a watchdog report released Nov. 16.

The Leapfrog Group is a nonprofit organization that provides ratings and safety data for hospitals and it recently released ratings for nearly 3,000 hospitals across the country. The fall 2022 grades mark the 10th anniversary of Leapfrog’s ranking.

Safe medication administration, infection and dangerous blood clots were some of the safety concerns Leapfrog identified in multiple metro-east and St. Louis-area hospitals. Seven of the eight providers whose data are included in this story scored below average for hand-washing.

The report showed some area hospitals have not yet recovered from national staffing shortages. Anderson Hospital and South City Hospital both received the lowest scores given to any hospital for having specially trained doctors available to care for intensive care unit patients.

Memorial Hospital Belleville improved its grade by two letters from this spring, while some other providers struggled to meet safety benchmarks.

HSHS St. Joseph’s Hospital in Breese received the lowest score given to any hospital for C. diff infections, and several other hospitals also scored below average on preventing infection.

Here’s how local hospitals performed, according to Leapfrog, including how to interpret ratings and which areas should be most heavily considered.

Metro-east area hospital grades

Memorial Hospital Belleville

Fall 2022 grade: A

Spring 2022: C

Fall 2021: C

Here are the areas in which Memorial Hospital Belleville scored below average this fall:

• MRSA infection (0.019 points worse than average)

• C. diff infection

• Infection in the blood

• Surgical wounds split open

• Serious breathing problem

• Harmful events (0.01 worse than average)

• Dangerous blood clot

• Safe medication administration

• Hand-washing

Memorial Hospital Belleville officials were not immediately available for comment.

HSHS St. Elizabeth’s Hospital in O’Fallon

Fall 2022 grade: A

Spring 2022: A

Fall 2021: A

Here are the areas in which HSHS St. Elizabeth’s Hospital in O’Fallon scored below average:

• Kidney injury after surgery

• Serious breathing problem

• Patient falls and injuries

• Falls causing broken hips

• Collapsed lung

• Dangerous blood clot

• Safe medication administration

• Hand-washing (HSHS St. Elizabeth’s Hospital received a 40 out of 100 for hand-washing. The average score given was 69.55.)

“The majority of the data collected for the Leapfrog Safety Grade comes from publicly reported data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and multiple other sources,” HSHS spokesperson Kelly Barbeau wrote in an email to the News-Democrat. “HSHS St. Elizabeth’s Hospital feels strongly that the public data is an accurate and transparent representation of our high-quality care and prioritization of patient safety. We are proud to note we have received an ‘A’ grade for nine straight cohorts of reporting.”

HSHS St. Joseph’s Hospital in Breese

Fall 2022 grade: C

Spring 2022: B

Fall 2021: B

Here are the area’s in which HSHS St. Joseph’s Hospital in Breese scored below average:

• C. diff infection (HSHS St. Joseph’s Hospital in Breese received a score of 1.844 in this category, the worst score given to any hospital.)

• Patient falls and injuries

• Falls causing broken hips

• Doctors order medications through a computer

• Safe medication administration

• Hand-washing

HSHS St. Joseph’s Hospital Breese officials were not immediately available for comment.

Gateway Regional Medical Center

Fall 2022 grade: D

Spring 2022: D

Fall 2021: D

Here are the areas in which Gateway Regional Medical Center scored below average:

• C. diff infection

• Accidental cuts and tears

• Patient falls and injuries

• Collapsed lung

• Dangerous blood clot

• Safe medication administration (Gateway Regional Medical Center received a 50 out of 100 in this category. The average score was 87.03.)

• Hand-washing (Gateway Regional Medical Center received a 40 out of 100 for hand-washing.)

• Communication about medicines

• Communication about discharge

• Staff work together to prevent errors (Gateway Regional Medical Center received a 0 in this category, the lowest score given to any hospital. The average score was 115.24 and the highest was 120.)

• Effective leadership to prevent errors

• Enough qualified nurses

• Communication with doctors

• Communication with nurses

• Responsiveness of hospital staff

Gateway Regional Medical Center spokesperson Beth Ann Gailey wrote in an email to the News-Democrat the grade does not reflect the dedication and performance of staff.

“Gateway Regional Medical Center improved during the rating period and is always working to improve continually. Gateway continuously focuses on safety, quality, and our patients’ experience as part of its overall efforts to enhance clinical performance and excellence. It’s important to note that data used to compile Gateway’s current Leapfrog grade is more than three years old in some cases and does not reflect the dedication and clinical performance of Gateway’s physicians, nurses, and staff.”

Anderson Hospital

Fall 2022 grade: C

Spring 2022: C

Fall 2021: B

Here are the areas in which Anderson Hospital scored below average:

• Infection in the blood

• Infection in the urinary tract

• Sepsis infection after surgery

• Blood leakage

• Collapsed lung

• Dangerous blood clot

• Doctors order medications through a computer (Anderson Hospital received a 45 out of 100 in this category; the average was 87.)

• Safe medication administration (Anderson Hospital received a 45 out of 100 in this category; the average was 87.03.)

• Hand-washing

• Specially trained doctors care for intensive care unit patients (Anderson Hospital received a 5 out of 100 in this category, the lowest score given to any hospital.)

In an emailed statement, hospital spokesperson Natalie Head wrote to the News-Democrat Anderson Hospital performed above average in infection prevention measures in a Newsweek study.

“Leapfrog is an independent organization that collects and reports one-of-a-kind data. There are many similar organizations, all using public information with differing methodologies.

This year Anderson Hospital ranked in the top 6% of hospitals in the United States through another independent study done by Newsweek. Newsweek also recognized Anderson Hospital for performing above the average in Infection Prevention measures.”

“In 2021, Anderson Hospital was the only hospital in southwestern Illinois to earn a 5 Star Rating from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). The annual CMS stars program serves as a healthcare guide to hospital quality, comprising more than 50 individual measures that include safety of care, readmissions, patient experience, hospital mortality and timely and effective care.”

“Anderson Hospital participates in reporting quality information so it is available to the public. Links to national and state programs and organizations that provide these reports are readily available on our Quality page on our website.”

OSF St. Anthony’s Health Center in Alton

Fall 2022 grade: C

Spring 2022: B

Fall 2021: A

Here are the areas in which OSF St. Anthony’s Health Center scored below average:

• C. diff infection

• Infection in the blood

• Infection in the urinary tract (OSF St. Anthony’s Health Center received a 3.517 in this category, the worst score given to any hospital.)

• Sepsis infection after surgery

• Kidney injury after surgery

• Safe medication administration

• Specially trained doctors care for intensive care unit patients

In an emailed statement, hospital spokesperson Tim Ditman told the News-Democrat the OSF hospital system is dedicated to improving safety and quality of care.

“OSF HealthCare works hard to provide the highest level of patient care. Of the 15 hospitals across our Ministry, 10 of which receive a Leapfrog grade, OSF Saint Francis Medical Center, our 649-bed Level 1 trauma center in Peoria, received an A; 5 earned a B; and 4 were graded at a C, with three of those just fractionally lower than the B level.”

“OSF supports transparency about quality and safety information such as that provided through the Leapfrog grades and is committed to finding ways to improve safety and quality of care. We are proud of the work our Mission Partners (employees) do every day and how they have faced the many challenges of the past two years.”

SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital in Centralia

Fall 2022 grade: A

Spring 2022: A

Fall 2021: A

Here are the areas in which SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital in Centralia scored below average:

• Sepsis infection after surgery

• Patient falls and injuries

• Falls causing broken hips

• Collapsed lung

• Hand-washing

• Responsiveness of hospital staff (SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital scored 0.91 points below average in this category.)

“On behalf of our team at SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital, it is an honor to again be recognized with an ‘A’ rating for patient safety,” Damon Harbison, president of SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital, said in a Nov. 16 statement. “This award shows we remain committed to the delivery of exceptional patient care.”

South City Hospital

Fall 2022 grade: D

Spring 2022: Not graded

Fall 2021: F

Here are the areas in which South City Hospital scored below average:

• Serious breathing problem

• Harmful events

• Dangerous bed sores

• Falls causing broken hips

• Collapsed lung

• Doctors order medications through a computer

• Safe medication administration (South City Hospital received a 5 out of 100 in this category, the lowest score given to any hospital.)

• Hand-washing

• Communication about medicines

• Communication about discharge

• Specially trained doctors care for ICU patients (South City Hospital received a 5 out of 100 in this category, the lowest score given to any hospital.)

• Communication with doctors

• Communication with nurses

• Responsiveness of hospital staff

South City Hospital officials were not immediately available for comment.

How are hospital grades calculated?

Safety grades are calculated using up to 22 national safety measures from the Leapfrog survey and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The full methodology is available online and is peer-reviewed by the Journal of Patient Safety.

Grades are composed 50% by process and structural measures and 50% by outcome measures. The scoring scales differ by the chosen measure.

Across the U.S., 30% of hospitals received an “A,” 28% received a “B,” 36% received a “C,” 6% received a “D” and 1% received an “F” in the fall 2022 ratings.

How should I use these scores?

Leapfrog emphasizes you should not refuse emergency care based on hospital ratings. The group intends the scores to be used when planning things like childbirth, surgery referrals or chronic illness treatment.

The areas you should pay most attention to when choosing a hospital include hand-washing, infection in the blood and patient falls, Leapfrog’s website says.

You should also consider how far off your hospital was from the average for any given standard. When evaluating a hospital, you can see the highest and lowest scores given, which helps in weighing a value. The “below average” category can include hospitals that scored 0.01 points under goal, along with facilities with the lowest possible score.

For hospitals that responded to Leapfrog’s survey, there’s often information available about which areas the hospital has improved in and which areas are not going in the right direction.

A hospital being ungraded does not denote a lack of safety. Ratings are often unavailable for facilities that decline to self-report, as well as smaller providers, children’s hospitals, surgical centers and critical access hospitals.

Where can I find more hospital ratings?

Leapfrog allows you to search for hospitals by name, location or state. There’s an online search tool where you can find information about more hospitals.