YuLin Zhen, Photography Editor

For the fourth season in a row, Yale New Haven Hospital and Yale New Haven Hospital, Saint Raphael Campus earned a “C” on the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade. 

The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, released biannually, evaluates patient safety in general acute-care hospitals across the United States, grading them on a scale from “A” to “F.” More than half of Connecticut hospitals received a grade higher than YNHH and its Saint Raphael campus. Per Leapfrog Safety Grade, YNHH performs worse than average in staff responsiveness, blood leakage, dangerous object left in patient’s body and patient falls and injuries categories.

“The numbers of mistakes that do happen are far too high and we need to keep focusing on it,” Lisa Freeman, executive director of the Connecticut Center for Patient Safety, told the News. “And we need to involve the patients more.”

YNHH did not respond to requests for comment.

The Leapfrog Safety Grade uses data from multiple sources, including the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services — CMS. The system assesses up to 22 measures of patient safety and compares each measure to the national average to produce a single letter grade for each category. 

The rating’s purpose is to enable patients to make a more informed decision when choosing a hospital. According to Alexandra Campione, a program analyst for the Leapfrog Group, hospitals with a “C” grade lost an additional three lives per 1,000 patients compared to “A”-rated hospitals.

“Patient safety is something that should be on the forefront of everyone’s minds when they are admitted to a hospital,” Campione wrote to the News, adding that patients should seek out higher-rated hospitals when possible. 

Yale New Haven Hospitals have received a “C” rating in six out of seven past seasons. The latest report identified that the hospitals have performed worse than average in nine categories.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Freeman shared, she went to the YNHH emergency room after sustaining a concussion. There, she waited two hours before receiving an initial CAT scan, after which she was placed in the waiting room for eight hours with no further response.

“They’re below average when it comes to responsiveness of hospital staff,” Freeman said. “And that’s why people go to the hospital, because they need a response.” 

However, Yale New Haven hospitals performed above average in practices to prevent errors: nursing and bedside care for patients, doctors ordering medication through a computer and safe medication administration.

While Leapfrog is a tool for patients to evaluate a hospital’s safety, it is not a regulatory standard.

“The Connecticut Department of Public Health — CTDPH — does not utilize grading systems of private organizations nor evaluate any alignment between such systems and the regulatory standards that apply to hospitals,” Christopher Boyle, a CTDPH spokesperson, wrote the News. 

Instead, the CTDPH enforces compliance with federal and state safety requirements, investigating complaints and ensuring healthcare facilities meet established regulatory standards.

Freeman explained that the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade is an accurate and reliable patient safety measure. She emphasizes that the Leapfrog Group is one of the few systems focusing specifically on patient safety.

“It’s a very good tool. As a patient, my concern would be, am I going to come out as whole as I went in?” Freeman said. “And I think Leapfrog covers that very, very well.”

According to Campione, hospitals like YNHH have the tools to improve their ratings. The organization recommends greater attention to infection control, enhanced staff training and better adherence to safety protocols to reduce preventable errors.

YNHH is located at 20 York St.