ICYMI: Community Medical Center Receives C Grade For Patient Safety: Group

TOMS RIVER, NJ — Community Medical Center in Toms River has received a C grade for patient safety from a nonprofit founded by employers and healthcare providers, the organization announced Wednesday.

The Leapfrog Group, which has been ranking hospitals for several years, announced its Spring 2017 safety grades for hospitals across the nation, including 68 in New Jersey.

The hospitals were given a letter grade from A through F based on several factors, including medical errors, accidents, injuries and infections. The goal is to determine what a patient's risk of further injury or infection is if they visit a certain hospital, the organization says.

According to the organization, more than 1,000 Americans die each day from preventable hospital errors. Hospitals given a B rating by Leapfrog had a 9 percent higher risk of avoidable death than A hospitals. That number jumps to 35 percent in C hospitals and 50 percent higher in D and F hospitals.

Community Medical Center of Toms River was one of 18 hospitals to receive a C and one of two in Ocean County to receive one. Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus in Lakewood, formerly known as Kimball Medical Center, also received a C.

Community received positive scores in the categories of problems with surgery and training to prevent safety issues, but poorer scores on communication both among hospital staff and between staff and patients. The hospital received mixed scores on infections and practices to prevent errors.

Read the full score report here.

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