Capital BlueCross has signed an agreement with The Leapfrog Group, a national nonprofit organization focused on health care quality and safety, that will establish a regional hospital recognition program to help employers and consumers in central Pennsylvania and the Lehigh Valley make more informed health care decisions.
Capital BlueCross is the first health insurer in Pennsylvania, and the second health insurer nationwide, to partner with The Leapfrog Group on this type of health care quality recognition program. The company will work with the organization to evaluate hospital performance and provide consumer-friendly results.
Through the Leapfrog Hospital Survey, participating hospitals respond to a detailed assessment focusing on three key areas: how patients fare; resources used in caring for patients; and leadership and structures that promote patient safety.
Survey questions fall into nine categories:
Basic hospital information
Computerized physician order entry
Evidence-based hospital referral
Maternity care
ICU physician staffing
National Quality Forum Safe Practices Score
Managing serious errors
Bar code medication administration
Resource Use
The Leapfrog Hospital Survey is the only nationally standardized and endorsed set of measures that captures hospital performance in patient safety, quality and resource utilization.