Contact:
Michelle Aliprantis, MBA
Regional Director of Business Development, Marketing and Communications | PA Markets
Roxborough, Suburban, and Lower Bucks Hospital
(215) 785-9817
MAliprantis@primehealthcare.com
Lower Bucks Hospital Achieves Healthgrades 2020 Patient Safety Excellence AwardTM
Lower Bucks Hospital in the top 10% in the Nation for Patient Safety
Bristol, PA (06/23/2020) –Lower Bucks Hospital announced today that it is a recipient of the Healthgrades 2020 Patient Safety Excellence AwardTM. This distinction places Lower Bucks Hospital among the top 10% of all short-term acute care hospitals reporting patient safety data as evaluated by Healthgrades, the leading resource that connects consumers, physicians and health systems. Lower Bucks Hospital is a member of Prime Healthcare, which operates 45 hospitals in 14 states. Prime Healthcare has more Patient Safety Excellence Award recipients for five consecutive years (2016-2020) than any other health system in the country, according to Healthgrades.
“Consumers might not know that information around patient safety is readily available and should be considered when researching healthcare options,” said Brad Bowman, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Healthgrades. “We commend the recipients of the 2020 Patient Safety Excellence Award for their dedication to providing excellent care for their patients.”
“We are extremely proud to be ranked in the top 10% in the nation for patient safety,” said Dr. Ronak Bhimani, chief medical officer at Lower Bucks Hospital.“We have an ongoing commitment to ensuring compliance with the strictest safety standards while also implementing new processes as needed to safeguard our patients,” said Bhimani. “This national recognition is a testament to the commitment of entire team to quality outcomes, patient safety and clinical excellence.”
During the study period (2016 through 2018), Healthgrades 2020 Patient Safety Excellence Award recipient hospitals demonstrated excellent performance in safeguarding patients in the Medicare population, as measured by objective outcomes—risk-adjusted patient safety indicator (PSI) rates—for 13 PSIs defined by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). A 14th PSI included in the evaluation is Foreign Objects Left in Body During a Surgery or Procedure which is a “never” event and does not have an expected rate.
Healthgrades found that patients treated in hospitals receiving the Patient Safety Excellence Award were, on average*:
- 48.3% less likely to experience a collapsed lung due to a procedure or surgery in or around the chest, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals.
- 54.4% less likely to experience a hip fracture following surgery, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals.
- 66.8% less likely to experience pressure sores or bed sores acquired in the hospital, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals.
- 63% less likely to experience catheter-related bloodstream infections acquired at the hospital, than patients treated at non- recipient hospitals.
In addition, if all hospitals in the country performed at the level of award recipients for each of the 13 patient safety indicators, 110,864 patient safety events could have been avoided.*
“The Healthgrades 2020 Patient Safety Excellence Award reinforces our team’s hard work and commitment to excellence,” said Lea Rodriguez, MSN, RN, CNO.
Lower Bucks Hospital has received numerous awards and recognitions. Some of their Quality Achievements include:
- Accreditation from The Joint Commission
- American Heart Association/American Stroke Association for quality of Stroke Care Award 2018 and 2019
- American Heart Association/ American Stroke Association Stroke Silver Plus Award 2018
- Five-Star Recipient for Appendectomy for 5 Years in a row (2015-2020)
- Five-Star Recipient for Treatment of Sepsis for 3 years in row (2018-2020)
- Five-Star Recipient for Treatment of Pneumonia in 2019
- Recipient of the Healthgrades 2018 and 2019 Patient Safety Excellence Award
- Named Among the Top 10% in the Nation for Patient Safety in 2018 and 2020
- Names Among the Top 5% in the Nation for Patient Safety in 2019
- Corazon, Inc. the cardiovascular specialty accreditation to the PCI program, 2019
- Imaging services accredited by the American College of Radiology (ACR)
View Healthgrades hospital quality methodologies.
*Statistics are calculated from Healthgrades Patient Safety Ratings and Excellence Award methodology which is based primarily on AHRQ technical specifications (Version 2019.0.1) to MedPAR data for years 2016 through 2018 and represent three-year estimates for Medicare patients only.
About Lower Bucks Hospital:
Lower Bucks Hospital is a community hospital, serving the Lower Bucks County region with medical, surgical, and emergency care. Located in historic Bristol, Pennsylvania, the Hospital is well-known for its knowledgeable medical staff, including cardiology, orthopedics, sports medicine, radiology, and general surgery. A residency program affiliated with The Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine is well known for internal and family medicine. The hospital has more than 200 physicians on staff, as well as another 700 employees. As part of Prime Healthcare Services, headquartered in Ontario, California, Lower Bucks Hospital is focused on becoming one of the leaders in technology. Prime Healthcare is an award-winning hospital management company operating 45 acute care hospitals in 14 states, including Roxborough Memorial Hospital in Philadelphia, Lower Bucks Hospital in Bristol, and Suburban Community Hospital in Montgomery County.