St. Joseph Mercy hospitals receive national safety distinction for preventative practices

St. Joe’s Ann Arbor, Livingston County receive ‘A’ rating

St. Joseph Mercy Hospital Ann Arbor at 5301 McAuley Dr. in Ypsilanti. (Benjamin Weatherston, photo by Benjamin Weatherston)

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Two St. Joseph Mercy hospitals have received a national distinction for their safety standards and patient protection.

The Leapfrog Group—which awards the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade—gave both St. Joseph Mercy Ann Arbor and St. Joseph Mercy Livingston an “A” grade.

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“Families living and working in Washtenaw and Livingston Counties should rest assured that patient safety standards inside our hospitals is second to none,” said St. Joseph Mercy Ann Arbor and St. Joseph Mercy Livingston president Alonzo Lewis. “I commend all our colleagues for working amid such challenging times, yet not letting up in their pursuit to deliver safe, high-quality care to the communities we serve.”

The distinction from the independent national watchdog organization recognizes how hospitals prevent medical errors and harm to patients.

A peer-reviewed grading system gives grades A to F to general hospitals throughout the United States based on more than 30 performance measures including handwashing, patient injuries, accidents, infections and preventative practices hospitals have to keep patients from harm. The measures are reviewed twice a year in the spring and fall.

“An ‘A’ Safety Grade is a tremendous achievement, of which communities served by St. Joe’s should be extremely proud,” said The Leapfrog Group CEO and president Leah Binder. “I thank the leadership and workforce of St. Joseph Mercy Ann Arbor and St. Joseph Mercy Livingston for their commitment to prioritizing patients and their safety, especially during these trying times.”

For Fall 2021, St. Joseph Mercy Ann Arbor received above average scores for several measurements including qualified nurses, effective leadership, safe medication administration, preventing serious breathing problems, staff responsiveness, staff cooperation in preventing errors, and communication about medicinal and hospital discharge.

Average scores were given for preventative measures related to MRSA infections and collapsed lung injuries; however, below average scores were given for measurements related to infections and patient falls.

The hospital previously received “B” grades this past spring and over the past few years.

St. Joseph Mercy Chelsea and Mercy Health Saint Mary’s—two other hospitals in the Trinity Health Michigan system—also received “A” grades for their preventative practices.

View the St. Joseph Mercy Ann Arbor profile of scores for all measurements here.


About the Author:

Sarah has worked for WDIV since June 2018. She covers community events, good eats and small businesses in Ann Arbor and has a Master's degree in Applied Linguistics from Grand Valley State University.