New Hospital Safety Scores, which assign A, B, C, D and F letter grades to hospitals nationwide and provide a picture of patient safety in the U.S. health care system, were announced in April by The Leapfrog Group, a national patient safety watchdog.

Mercy Regional Medical Center was one of only 823 hospitals in the nation and 16 in Colorado to receive an 'A' for its commitment to reducing errors, infections, and accidents that can harm patients. This is the tenth consecutive 'A' grade Mercy has received since the fall of 2012.

"We're proud to share that once again Mercy have been nationally recognized for its commitment to patient safety with yet another 'A' grade for patient safety," said Bill Plauth, M.D., Mercy's chief medical officer. "This recognition from The Leapfrog Group is a testament to the dedication and professionalism of our excellent physicians, allied health professionals, nurses, and staff. This award would not be possible without the generous support from our community and the collaboration with our community and Centura Health partners," he added.

"Hospitals that earn top marks nationally in the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade have achieved the highest safety standards in the country," said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. "That takes commitment from every member of the hospital staff, who all deserve thanks and congratulations when their hospitals achieve an 'A' Safety Grade."

Developed under the guidance of Leapfrog's Blue Ribbon Expert Panel, the Hospital Safety Score uses 30 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign A, B, C, D, and F grades to more than 2,600 U.S. hospitals twice per year. It is calculated by patient safety experts, peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public.

To see how Mercy's score compares locally and nationally, visit the Hospital Safety Score website at www.hospitalsafetyscore.org.