St. Joseph Medical Center Recognized for Excellent Patient Care

St. Joseph Receives Award for Excellent Care

By Abby Trapp

Staff efforts at the St. Joseph Medical Center were recognized with not one, but two awards on June 20 when the hospital received the 2018 Patient Safety Excellence Award. The award recognizes hospitals across the nation that have prevented serious and avoidable complications for patients.

St. Joseph Medical Center is the only hospital in Kansas City, Mo., to receive this recognition along with the Leapfrog A Safety Grade Award. The distinction places the medical center among the top 10 percent for excellence of all acute care hospitals reporting patient safety data as evaluated by Healthgrades, an online resource for information on health care providers.

A ceremony took place in the medical atrium as Maggie Foley, Healthgrades director of quality solutions, presented the award to Jodi Fincer, CEO of St. Joseph Medical Center, with hospital staff present.

“At the end of the day, our goal is to empower patients to make better informed decisions about where they choose to seek medical care,” Foley stated in her speech.

During the 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
• 62.8 percent less likely to experience catheter-related bloodstream infections acquired at the hospital
• 54.3 percent less likely to experience pressure sores or bed sores acquired in the hospital

Healthgrades determines this safety award on a number of factors including data gathered between 2014-2016, clinical outcomes and safety expectations.