N.M. medical execs dispute hospital safety study

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - New Mexico's hospitals rank last when in comes to patient safety, according to a recent report, but locals in the medical field said the study is flawed.

"If you choose not to participate, they still grade you," said Dr. Marc-David Munk, executive medical director for quality at the University of New Mexico Hospital. "As a consequence, we got a 'C' score."

The "Hospital Safety Score," released by The Leapfrog Group, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit, graded hospitals in areas such as the number of injury cases from falls, medication errors and deaths related to surgery complications, then ranked each state based on its number of "A" grade hospitals.

New Mexico came in dead last.

"New Mexico only has one hospital earning an ‘A,’ and it ends up being the lowest among the states in our database," said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group.

The only A-rated hospital in the state was Española Hospital, which is run by Presbyterian. Of the 13 other New Mexico hospitals rated, more than half received a "C" including UNMH, the state's biggest hospital.

Roswell Regional Hospital, operated by Lovelace, got a "D," the worst grade in the state. Other major hospitals in the state were not ranked including Christus St. Vincent, the only hospital in Santa Fe.

The New Mexico Hospital Association President Jeff Dye dismissed the Leapfrog report saying its methods were flawed. Leapfrog gives hospitals a better score if they participate in the survey, Dye said.

"That creates a bias in the data," Dye said. "We just don't think that the Leapfrog analysis is a valid tool."

Dye also said most hospitals around the country and the American Hospital Association also dismiss the Leapfrog report for being unfair.

Leapfrog officials said only the state's Presbyterian Hospitals in Albuquerque, Clovis and Española submitted data. Those medical centers received an "A" or "B" in the report.

But Binder said the group didn't favor hospitals that chose to participate and that she stands by the findings. The group takes most of their information from federal data, which is publicly available, she said.

"Those criticizing the methodology don't tend to be the ones getting an 'A,' " Binder said.

Federal hospital safety data shows UNMH's rate for serious complications from surgery is worse than the national average. But Munk said UNMH is in better shape than the Leapfrog report implies. He said the hospital has a team committed to reducing error, infections, complications and the like.

"Whether they are surgical safety programs, whether they are the medication safety administration programs, whether it's our simulation testing that we put our doctors, nurses and technicians through, there's a wide range of patient safety measures taking place," Munk said.

Binder said hospital safety is a nationwide problem. The Leapfrog Group said one in four patients admitted to hospitals nationwide develop conditions they did not originally come in with.