STANFORD, Calif-- Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital at Stanford has announced that it is one of only nine children’s hospitals in the country to make the first-ever “Leapfrog Top Hospitals” list. The Leapfrog Group based its selections on the results of its annual Hospital Quality and Safety Survey, which provides  a comprehensive assessment of each facility’s quality and safety. Over 1200 hospitals nationwide responded to the voluntary survey; only 59 institutions made the final “Top Hospitals” list.

 “We are absolutely committed to provide the very best care for our patients,” said hospital CEO Christopher Dawes. “We complement the skills of our world-class physicians and nurses with proven ways to reduce or eliminate medical errors and implement best practices. We are extremely proud of our patient safety track record and the awards that recognize our efforts.”
 
The Leapfrog Group is a nationwide consortium of nearly 200 health care purchasers dedicated to rewarding excellence. Leapfrog seeks to help consumers make informed choices in care by comparing hospitals’ compliance with a list of known evidence-based patient safety and quality of care practices. The group’s website displays each hospital’s results and can be viewed at www.leapfroggroup.org.

The 59 hospitals on the Leapfrog list stand out from their peers through their implementation of 30 “Safe Practices for Better Health Care” as defined by the National Quality Forum. These practices include, among others:  the presence of pharmacists on site 24 hours a day, 7-days-per-week; adherence to effective methods of preventing infections; ensuring adequate nursing staffing; and properly informing patients of procedure risks.

Since 2003, the Board of Directors at Packard Children’s has established patient safety to be the hospital’s number one priority. The focus is paying off. Packard Children’s has been recognized multiple times in the past two years for its ongoing commitment to patient safety as well as its outstanding patient safety related outcomes.

 “The  passionate and unwavering dedication to providing the highest quality of care and patient safety promoted by the medical and administrative leadership of Packard Children’s benefits patients and staff alike,” said the hospital’s Chief Clinical Patient Safety Officer Paul Sharek, MD, MPH. “Other children’s hospitals frequently turn to us to learn how to effectively implement patient safety best practices as soon as they’re identified.”
 
“Given the complexity and high-risk nature of the patients we treat at Packard Children’s, our patient safety track record is remarkable,” added Sharek. “This is not by accident. The consistent message throughout the entire hospital is ‘patient safety first,’ and it’s a commitment shared by the entire medical, nursing, and ancillary staff. It’s an honor to serve as the director of this movement.”
 
About Lucile Packard Children's Hospital
Ranked annually as one of the best pediatric hospitals in the nation by U.S.News & World Report, Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford is a 264-bed hospital devoted to the care of children and expectant mothers. Providing pediatric and obstetric medical and surgical services and associated with the Stanford University School of Medicine, Packard Children's offers patients locally, regionally and nationally the full range of health care programs and services — from preventive and routine care to the diagnosis and treatment of serious illness and injury. For more information, visit www.lpch.org.