3 Minnesota Hospitals Get Poor 'D' Grade for Patient Safety

Three Minnesota hospitals have received a worrisome 'D' grade for patient safety for 2024 by The Leapfrog Group. On the other end, five Minnesota hospitals scored an 'A.' Everyone else is somewhere in between.

All five of the Minnesota hospitals that received 'A' grades for patient safety are part of the Mayo Health System.

Minnesota 'A' Grade Patient Safety Hospitals for 2024

Mayo Clinic Health System - Austin
Mayo Clinic Health System - Fairmont
Mayo Clinic Health System - Mankato
Mayo Clinic Health System - Red Wing
Mayo Clinic Health System - Rochester

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The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade is a public service provided by The Leapfrog Group, an independent nonprofit organization committed to driving quality, safety, and transparency in the U.S. health system.

What is the difference between patient safety and quality?

Patient safety has to do with focusing on avoiding bad events, making mistakes and errors less likely. Quality focuses on doing things well, delivering proper, high quality care for the patient.

I was once mistakenly hooked up to another patient's IV bag from the hospital pharmacy. That's an error that would affect a hospital's patient safety rating for sure. Fortunately, there were no ill effects.

Patient Safety Spotlight according to The Leapfrog Group

Upwards of 200,000 people die every year from hospital errors, injuries, accidents, and infections.
Every year, 1 out of every 31 patients develops an infection while in the hospital; an infection that didn’t have to happen.
A Medicare patient has a 1 in 4 chance of experiencing injury, harm or death when admitted to a hospital.
Today alone, more than 500 people will die because of a preventable hospital error.