St. Joseph Mercy Chelsea receives prestigious top hospital award

from Bobby Maldonado

Each year only two percent of U.S. hospitals receive award

NOVI, MICHIGAN, Dec. 7, 2017 – The Economic Alliance for Michigan (EAM), a nonprofit group comprised of Michigan’s largest employers and unions, along with The Leapfrog Group, a Washington D.C-based organization aiming to improve health care quality for consumers, employers and purchasers, announced today four hospitals in Michigan have been named to its 2017 national list of Top Hospitals. The elite award is one of the most competitive honors American hospitals can receive in safety and quality. The winning facilities will be officially recognized at Leapfrog’s Annual Top Hospitals Ceremony tonight in Arlington, VA.

St. Joseph Mercy Hospital Chelsea is one of only 45 hospitals in the country to receive the Top General Hospital award. This is the hospital’s first time achieving this explementary status. Each year, roughly only two percent of hospitals in the U.S. are awarded Top Hospital.

This year, Leapfrog recognized 109 Top Hospitals across the country. Of those, 10 were Top Children’s Hospitals, 18 Top Rural Hospitals, 36 Top Teaching Hospitals and, as previously mentioned, 45 Top General Hospitals.

“The Leapfrog Group sets the toughest standards for patient safety and quality in the industry and we congratulate St. Joseph Mercy Chelsea for all their hard work and dedication in achieving this exceptional accomplishment,” said Bret Jackson, president, EAM. “There is a great deal of exceptional care delivered in and around Washtenaw County and St. Joseph Mercy Chelsea is raising the bar.”

The other Michigan hospitals receiving the Top Hospital award are:

• OSF St. Francis Hospital, Escanaba, Top Rural Hospital
• St. Joseph Mercy Oakland, Pontiac, Top Teaching Hospital
• MidMichigan Medical Center – Gladwin, Top Rural Hospital

“Leapfrog Top Hospitals are the nation’s role models for putting patients first,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “We congratulate the Boards, management, clinicians, staff and volunteers whose dedication makes all the difference.”

The Top Hospital award is given to teaching, general, rural and children’s hospitals that publicly report their performance through the Leapfrog Hospital Survey and meet the high standards defined in the Top Hospitals Methodology. This includes infection rates, maternity care and a hospital’s ability to prevent medication errors, among other standards. To see the full national list of institutions honored as 2017 Top Hospitals, please visit www.leapfroggroup.org/tophospitals.

About the Economic Alliance for Michigan

Founded in 1982, the EAM is comprised of businesses and unions working together with one clear objective – continued growth of Michigan’s economy by inspiring job growth and strengthen Michigan’s competitiveness for attracting companies and talent. A main objective of the EAM is bringing attention to lawmakers and the public about the rising health care costs and its effect on the economy. The EAM is the Michigan Regional Leader for The Leapfrog Group. Learn more about the EAM at www.eamonline.org. Follow us on Twitter @EAMOnline.

About The Leapfrog Group

Founded in 2000 by large employers and other purchasers, The Leapfrog Group is a national nonprofit organization driving a movement for giant leaps forward in the quality and safety of American health care. The flagship Leapfrog

Hospital Survey collects and transparently reports hospital performance, empowering purchasers to find the highest-value care and giving consumers the lifesaving information they need to make informed decisions. The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, Leapfrog’s other main initiative, assigns letter grades to hospitals based on their record of patient safety, helping consumers protect themselves and their families from errors, injuries, accidents, and infections.

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