The Leapfrog Group Issues “A” Safety Grade to Kaiser Permanente Woodland Hills

Kaiser Permanente Woodland Hills and ten other Kaiser Permanente hospitals in Southern California have received “A” grades for excellence in patient safety in the spring 2019 Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade report.

The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses 30 national performance measures to produce a single letter grade representing a hospital’s overall performance in keeping patients safe from preventable harm and medical errors. Additionally, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade methodology has been peer reviewed and published in the Journal of Patient Safety.

The Kaiser Permanente hospitals that received Leapfrog’s “A” rating in Southern California are located in: Anaheim, Baldwin Park, Downey, Fontana, Irvine, Ontario, Panorama City, Riverside, San Diego Zion, South Bay and Woodland Hills. In California, of the 256 hospitals on Leapfrog’s list, only 87 received “A” grades. Only 28% of non-Kaiser Permanente hospitals received an “A” grade.

“We are very proud of this recognition, and we attribute these high marks to the staff and physicians who spend every day looking out for the health care needs of our 4.6 million members in Southern California,” said Julie Miller-Phipps, president of Kaiser Foundation Health Plan and Hospitals for Southern California. “Kaiser Permanente’s integrated patient-focused model provides the high-quality medical care and service our members and patients expect and deserve.”

Dr. Edward M. Ellison, executive medical director for the Southern California Permanente Medical Group, echoed those sentiments. “These high marks are the result of Kaiser Permanente’s unwavering commitment to patient safety,” he said. “We believe in delivering the highest quality of care using the latest technology. Such care is delivered with warmth and compassion, and without compromising patient safety.”