Baptist Golden Triangle earns 23 consecutive straight ‘A’ Hospital Safety Grades from Leapfrog Group

COLUMBUS, Miss. –The Leapfrog Group, a national nonprofit upholding the standard of patient safety in hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers, awarded Baptist Memorial Hospital-Golden Triangle an A Hospital Safety Grade for the 23rd consecutive time.

This accolade recognizes Baptist Golden Triangle as one of only 20 hospitals in the country to be awarded an A in every Hospital Safety Grade cycle since 2012, including this latest grade update during the height of the pandemic.

“We’re honored to receive an A rating from Leapfrog for 11 consecutive years,” said Rob Coleman, CEO and administrator of Baptist Golden Triangle. “It is a significant accomplishment and a testament to our team’s continued dedication to providing quality care and patient safety.”

The Leapfrog Group, an independent national watchdog organization, assigns an A, B, C, D or F grade to general hospitals across the country based on more than 30 national performance measures reflecting errors, accidents, injuries and infections, as well as systems hospitals have in place to prevent harm.

This national distinction celebrates a hospital’s achievements in prioritizing patient safety by protecting patients from preventable harm and errors. The new grades reflect performance primarily during the height of the pandemic.

“This new update of Hospital Safety Grades shows that, at the national level, we saw deterioration in patient safety with the pandemic,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of the Leapfrog Group. “But Baptist Golden Triangle received an A despite those challenges. I congratulate all the leaders, staff, volunteers and clinicians who together made that possible.”

The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade is the only hospital ratings program based exclusively on hospital prevention of medical errors and harm to patients. The grading system is peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public. Grades are updated twice annually, in the fall and spring.

To see Baptist Golden Triangle’s full grade details and to access patient tips for staying safe in the hospital, visit HospitalSafetyGrade.org.

Founded in 2000 by large employers and other purchasers, the Leapfrog Group is a national nonprofit organization driving a movement for giant leaps for patient safety. The flagship Leapfrog Hospital Survey and new Leapfrog Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC) Survey collect and transparently report hospital and ASC performance, empowering purchasers to find the highest value care and giving consumers the lifesaving information they need to make informed decisions. The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, Leapfrog's other main initiative, assigns letter grades to hospitals based on their record of patient safety, helping consumers protect themselves and their families from errors, injuries, accidents and infections. For more, follow us on Twitter and Facebook, and sign up for our newsletter.

With 323 beds, Baptist Memorial Hospital-Golden Triangle is one of the largest regional hospitals affiliated with Baptist Memorial Health Care. More than 100 physicians and surgeons, representing almost every medical specialty, practice at the hospital that offers a full range of comprehensive medical care to patients of all ages. In addition to the Baptist Cancer Center in Columbus and Starkville, the hospital offers a variety of other services to the community, including Baptist Behavioral Health Care; an extensive rehabilitation department; and free community education programs for the public. Baptist Golden Triangle is the only hospital in Mississippi and one of only 22 in the U.S. to have achieved Straight A’s on Leapfrog’s Hospital Safety Score since 2012. For more information, please call 662-244-1000 or visit goldentriangle.baptistonline.org, or follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/Baptistgoldentriangle.