MACON, Ga. — Central Georgia’s largest hospital does a poor job of keeping patients safe from errors, accidents, injuries and infections. That's according to a semi-annual rating released by a national health care analyst.
The Leapfrog Group gave Atrium Health Navicent Medical Center in Macon a “D” grade overall for patient safety.
“We are dedicated to providing the safest, highest quality care available for our patients, families and communities - it’s what they deserve and what they expect, each and every day,” Atrium Health Navicent Macon told 13WMAZ in a statement.
Their scores rank well below average nationwide. Leapfrog group program analyst Alex Campione said nationwide over 200,000 patients die every year from preventable errors.
"If you're limited and your hospital is a D hospital, it just means you have to be a little more aware," she said.
Atrium Health Macon's results said they have problems with performing surgeries.... And the performance meters show they perform 'worse than average' in many categories. This includes leaving dangerous objects in patients' bodies.
"They can have a very serious impact on a patient's life, on their experience,” Campione said. “If they get an infection in the hospital, it's going to make their stay longer, more complicated and perhaps even mean death."
Campione said the hospital grade results come from public hospital data and voluntary surveys taken by the hospitals about their procedures. Leapfrog said Atrium Health Macon is also below average at preventing infections after surgery and communication about discharging patients and medicine.
"The doctors and nurses in the hospital can be great but they're also people too and mistakes happen,” she said. “It's really up to the hospital to create a safe environment."
Campione said you should explore your hospital options by looking at their websites before choosing.