Tampa General Hospital Recognized For Superior Maternity Care

TAMPA, FL — Tampa General Hospital has been named to the annual list of Best Maternity Hospitals in the United States by Newsweek and The Leapfrog Group, an independent nonprofit that monitors the quality and safety of health care organizations.

“We are honored to be named as one of the best maternity hospitals in the United States,” said Dr. Judette Louis, the co-director of Women and Children’s Services at Tampa General Hospital. “This distinction is a result of our efforts to provide safe and high-quality care for mothers and their babies across Tampa Bay. It reaffirms our message that where you deliver matters.”

A panel of national experts advised Leapfrog on the standards for achieving excellence in maternity care and earning a spot on the annual list. Those standards include:

• Low Early Elective Delivery Dates – Hospitals' effort to limit births prior to 39 weeks of gestation without medical necessity

• Lower Rates of Cesarean Sections for First-Time Mothers

• Low Episiotomy Rates

• High Rates of Newborn Screenings for Jaundice Prior to Hospital Discharge

• High Rates of Prevention Techniques to Prevent Blood Clots of Mothers Delivering via C-Section

The standards for hospitals to be considered for the list align with the latest medical research and best practices. Only 231 hospitals in 36 states passed these rigorous standards to earn a spot on the Best Maternity Hospitals 2020 list.

TGH is one of only three hospitals in the Tampa Bay area to have received international recognition as a Baby-Friendly designated birth facility by Baby-Friendly USA Inc, an organization that supports breastfeeding mothers and their babies.

The hospital attributes this to the work of Tampa General Hospital’s Jennifer Leigh Muma Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and its close affiliation with the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine.