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Quick Facts:
Fort Smith,
Northwest AR
Mercy Hospital Fort Smith and Mercy Hospital Northwest Arkansas have earned respectively their 18th and 12th straight A grade for patient safety from The Leapfrog Group, an independent national nonprofit watchdog. They are among the top 32% of hospitals nationwide and two of only six in Arkansas to earn this distinction.
With their dedication to patient safety, the Mercy Arkansas hospitals were also two of only 135 “Straight A” hospitals nationwide with at least five consecutive A grades and the only two in Arkansas to achieve this consistent excellence, according to Leapfrog.
“Mercy caregivers are absolutely committed to patient safety, and this rating reflects their high level of skill and care,” said Ryan Gehrig, president of Mercy Arkansas Communities.
Leapfrog rates hospitals on an A-F grading scale after reviewing more than 30 measures of errors, accidents, injuries and infections as well as the systems hospitals have in place to prevent them. Grades are updated twice annually, in the fall and spring.
“Achieving an A Hospital Safety Grade reflects enormous dedication to patient safety,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “I extend my congratulations to Mercy, its leadership, clinicians, staff and volunteers for creating a culture where patients come first.”
Eight additional Mercy hospitals have earned the highest rating including Ada, Ardmore, Jefferson, Lebanon, Oklahoma City, Pittsburg, Springfield and Washington.
The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade stands as the only hospital ratings program focused solely on preventable medical errors, infections and injuries that kill more than 500 patients a day in the United States. This program is peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public. To learn more about these grades, visit HospitalSafetyGrade.org and follow The Leapfrog Group on X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook.
Mercy Hospital Northwest Arkansas was also recently recognized as one of Newsweek’s top-tier World’s Best Hospitals as well as Newsweek’s top-rated maternity hospital in Arkansas. Mercy Hospital Fort Smith will open a $186 million upgrade of its emergency room and intensive care unit this month, expanding the care available to patients in the River Valley.
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 for patient safety. The flagship Leapfrog Hospital Survey and Leapfrog Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC) Survey collect and transparently report hospital and ASC 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. For more, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram and sign up for our newsletter.
