North Shore Hospitals Get Average Grades in Recent Safety Study

Most hospitals on the North Shore are average, according to a recent national hospital study.

The Leapfrog Group, along with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, evaluated the hospitals on the basis of numerous criteria and consolidated the results into a single letter grade for each.

Five of the six hospitals on the North Shore that were part of the study received a 'C' grade in the latest marking period. One did get a 'B,' that was Presence Saint Francis Hospital in Evanston. There were no 'A' or 'D' grades in the region.

Seven Chicagoland institutions did receive straight A's, however.

The national Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades for more than 2,500 hospitals are available at the safety score website.

“The analysis finds that despite considerable improvement in the safety of hospital care since the Score’s launch in 2012, avoidable deaths remain high,” the site said. “Findings point to a 9 percent higher risk of avoidable death in B hospitals, 35 percent higher in C hospitals, and 50 percent higher in D and F hospitals, than in A hospitals.”

Here are the letter grades for the last two marking periods — fall and spring 2016 — for each hospital on the North Shore:

• NorthShore University HealthSystem-Evanston Hospital, Evanston: C, C
• NorthShore University HealthSystem-Skokie Hospital, Skokie: C, C
• Presence Saint Francis Hospital, Evanston: C, B
• Northwestern Lake Forest Hospital, Lake Forest: B, C
• NorthShore University HealthSystem-Glenbrook Hospital, Glenview: C, C
• NorthShore University HealthSystem-Highland Park, Hospital Highland Park: C, C

photo via Patch archives