Tuscaloosa, Northport Hospitals Receive 'D' Safety Grades From Leapfrog

TUSCALOOSA, AL — How safe are hospitals in Tuscaloosa? The answer varies from hospital to hospital, according to new safety grades released by The Leapfrog Group — a prestigious national health care watchdog organization.

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The Leapfrog Group on Wednesday released its fall 2021 Hospital Safety Grades, which assigns a letter grade to the nation's general hospitals based on how well they prevent medical errors, accidents, injuries, and infections that kill or harm patients.

This year's list reviewed just over 2,900 hospitals, the largest number of hospitals ever graded.

It's important to note that not all hospitals participated in the annual survey and some only opted to submit information in certain categories.

For the Tuscaloosa area, three facilities were graded — DCH Regional Medical Center in Tuscaloosa, DCH's Northport Medical Center and Fayette Medical Center in neighboring Fayette County.

DCH Regional Medical Center

Overall Grade: D

INFECTIONS

• MSRA/Staph infections: Below average
• Clostridium difficile: Below average
• Infection in the blood: Above average
• Urinary tract infections during hospital stay: Below average
• Infections with surgical sites after colon surgery: Above average
• Sepsis infection after surgery: Not available

PROBLEMS WITH SURGERY

• Dangerous object left in patient’s body: Above average
• Surgical wounds splitting open: Above average
• Death from serious treatable complications: Below average
• Blood leakage during surgery: Above average
• Kidney injuries after surgery: Not Available
• Serious problems breathing: Not Available
• Accidental cuts and tears: Above average

SAFETY PROBLEMS

• Harmful events: Below average
• Dangerous bed sores: Below average
• Patients falls and injuries: Above average
• Falls causing broken hips: Below average
• Collapsed lungs: Above average
• Dangerous blood clots: Below average
• Air or gas bubble in the blood: Above average

PRACTICES TO PREVENT ERRORS

• Doctors order medication through a computer: Below average
• Safe medication administration: Below average
• Hand washing: Declined to report
• Communication about medicines: Below average
• Communication about discharge: Below average
• Staff work together to prevent errors: Declined to report

DOCTORS, NURSES & HOSPITAL STAFF

• Effective leadership to prevent errors: Declined to report
• Enough qualified nurses: Declined to report
• Specially-trained doctors care for ICU patients: Below average
• Communication with doctors: Average
• Communication with nurses: Below average
• Responsiveness of hospital staff: Below average

Northport Medical Center

Overall Grade: D

INFECTIONS

• MSRA/Staph infections: Below average
• Clostridium difficile: Below average
• Infection in the blood: Above average
• Urinary tract infections during hospital stay: Below average
• Infections with surgical sites after colon surgery: Above average
• Sepsis infection after surgery: Not available

PROBLEMS WITH SURGERY

• Dangerous object left in patient’s body: Above average
• Surgical wounds splitting open: Above average
• Death from serious treatable complications: Below average
• Blood leakage during surgery: Above average
• Kidney injuries after surgery: Not Available
• Serious problems breathing: Not Available
• Accidental cuts and tears: Above average

SAFETY PROBLEMS

• Harmful events: Below average
• Dangerous bed sores: Below average
• Patients falls and injuries: Above average
• Falls causing broken hips: Below average
• Collapsed lungs: Above average
• Dangerous blood clots: Below average
• Air or gas bubble in the blood: Above average

PRACTICES TO PREVENT ERRORS

• Doctors order medication through a computer: Below average
• Safe medication administration: Below average
• Hand washing: Declined to report
• Communication about medicines: Below average
• Communication about discharge: Below average
• Staff work together to prevent errors: Declined to report

DOCTORS, NURSES & HOSPITAL STAFF

• Effective leadership to prevent errors: Declined to report
• Enough qualified nurses: Declined to report
• Specially-trained doctors care for ICU patients: Below average
• Communication with doctors: Average
• Communication with nurses: Below average
• Responsiveness of hospital staff: Below average

Fayette Medical Center

Overall Grade: A

INFECTIONS

• MSRA/Staph infections: Not available
• Clostridium difficile: Below average
• Infection in the blood: Not available
• Urinary tract infections during hospital stay: Not available
• Infections with surgical sites after colon surgery: Not available
• Sepsis infection after surgery: Not available

PROBLEMS WITH SURGERY

• Dangerous object left in patient’s body: Above average
• Surgical wounds splitting open: Not available
• Death from serious treatable complications: Not available
• Blood leakage during surgery: Not available
• Kidney injuries after surgery: Average

SAFETY PROBLEMS

• Harmful events: Above average
• Dangerous bed sores: Above average
• Patients falls and injuries: Above average
• Falls causing broken hips: Below average
• Collapsed lungs: Average
• Dangerous blood clots: Not available
• Air or gas bubble in the blood: Above average

PRACTICES TO PREVENT ERRORS

• Doctors order medication through a computer: Below average
• Safe medication administration: Below average
• Hand washing: Declined to report
• Communication about medicines: Above average
• Communication about discharge: Above average
• Staff work together to prevent errors: Declined to report

DOCTORS, NURSES & HOSPITAL STAFF

• Effective leadership to prevent errors: Declined to report
• Enough qualified nurses: Declined to report
• Specially-trained doctors care for ICU patients: Declined to report
• Communication with doctors: Above average
• Communication with nurses: Above average
• Responsiveness of hospital staff: Above average

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