Healthgrades awards Overlook Medical Center for patient safety

SUMMIT, NJ – MAY 8, 2018 – Overlook Medical Center, part of Atlantic Health System, announced today that it is a recipient of the Healthgrades 2018 Patient Safety Excellence Award^™, a designation that recognizes superior performance of hospitals that have prevented the occurrence of serious, potentially avoidable complications for patients during hospital stays.

The distinction places Overlook among the top 10 percent of all short-term acute care hospitals reporting patient safety data for its excellent performance as evaluated by Healthgrades, the leading online resource for comprehensive information about physicians and hospitals.

“Overlook Medical Center is committed to providing a safe, healing experience and the highest quality of care for our patients,” said Alan Lieber, president of Overlook Medical Center. “In addition to being named by Healthgrades as one of ‘America’s 100 Best Hospitals’ for the second year in a row, this award is yet another testament to the work of the Overlook team to ensure that patient safety is our first priority.”

During the 2014 to 2016 study period, Healthgrades found that patients treated in hospitals receiving the Patient Safety Excellence Award were, on average:

• 55.6 percent less likely to experience an accidental cut, puncture, perforation or hemorrhage during medical care, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals
• 52.4 percent less likely to experience a collapsed lung due to a procedure or surgery in or around the chest, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals
• 62.8 percent less likely to experience catheter-related bloodstream infections acquired at the hospital, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals 

• 54.3 percent less likely to experience pressure sores or bed sores acquired in the hospital, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals^[1]


During the study period (2014 to 2016), Healthgrades 2018 Patient Safety Excellence Award recipient hospitals demonstrated excellent performance in safety provided for patients in the Medicare population, as measured by objective outcomes (risk-adjusted patient safety indicator rates) for 13 patient safety indicators defined by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ).

If all hospitals achieved the average performance of award recipients for each of the 13 Patient Safety Indicators evaluated, during the 2014 to 2016 study period, 126,342 patient safety events could have been avoided.

“We applaud the hospitals who have received the Healthgrades 2018 Patient Safety Excellence Award,” said Brad Bowman, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Healthgrades. “Their dedication and commitment to providing safe care creates tangible results for patients.”

Overlook’s sister hospital, Newton Medical Center, in Newton, NJ also received the Healthgrades 2018 Patient Safety Excellence Award.

View Healthgrades hospital quality methodologies.

Access the recently released Patient Sentiment Report from Healthgrades and MGMA, which analyzed nearly 7 million online patient reviews and reveals what patients say about their physicians.

About Atlantic Health System

Atlantic Health System, headquartered in Morristown, N.J., is an integrated health care delivery system powered by a workforce of over 16,000 team members and 4,796 affiliated physicians dedicated to building healthier communities. The system is comprised of over 400 sites of care, including six hospitals: Morristown Medical Center, Overlook Medical Center, Newton Medical Center, Chilton Medical Center, Hackettstown Medical Center and Goryeb Children’s Hospital.

It also includes Atlantic Alliance, a Clinically Integrated Network representing 2,500 health care providers throughout northern and central NJ. This network includes more than 900 physicians and providers within the Atlantic Medical Group, as well as members of the Atlantic Accountable Care Organization and Optimus Healthcare Partners which work to enhance patient care delivery.

Atlantic Health System also supports communities through Atlantic Rehabilitation and Atlantic Home Care and Hospice. Facilitating the connection between these services on both land and air is the transportation fleet of Atlantic Mobile Health. Atlantic Health System is a founding member of AllSpire Health Partners, a consortium of five leading health care organizations from the New Jersey, New York, Maryland and Pennsylvania region.

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