Patient safety ratings reflect the quality of care at a hospital by measuring how well the hospital prevents potentially
avoidable complications and adverse events following surgeries and procedures. HealthGrades uses Patient Safety Indicator
software from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (see www.ahrq.gov) to: 1)
Count the actual
number of patient safety events; and 2)
Predict the expected number of patient safety incidences
that are likely to occur at a hospital based on such factors as the types of cases treated at the hospital.
Ratings for each of the 12 patient safety indicators are based on a comparison of the actual number of events
to the expected number for that hospital.
Better than expected
Fewer patients were affected than expected.
Average
About the same number of patients were affected as expected.
Worse than expected
More patients were affected than expected.
Each patient safety indicator is rated independently and some indicators apply to more patients than others. Some
patient safety events occur more frequently than others. As a result, the rate of patients affected for each
indicator may vary substantially.