Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center Earns 2020 Leapfrog Top Hospital Award for Outstanding Quality and Safety

HOUSTON (December 8, 2020) – Highlighting its nationally recognized achievements in patient safety and quality, Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center (Baylor St. Luke’s) was named a Top Teaching Hospital nationally by The Leapfrog Group. Announced today, the Leapfrog Top Hospital award is widely acknowledged as one of the most competitive awards American hospitals can receive. The Top Hospital designation is bestowed by The Leapfrog Group, a national watchdog organization of employers and other purchasers widely acknowledged as the toughest standard-setters for health care safety and quality. 

“At Baylor St. Luke’s, we pride ourselves of maintaining the highest industry standards and putting patients and their safety at the center of everything we do and,” said Liz Youngblood, president of Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center. “We are proud to be recognized by The Leapfrog Group as a Top Teaching Hospital and to continue to invest in our next generation of health care professionals.”

Over 2,200 hospitals were considered for the award. Among those, Baylor St. Luke’s received a Top Teaching Hospital distinction. A total of 105 hospitals were selected as Top Hospitals, including:

• 9 Top Children’s Hospitals
• 29 Top General Hospitals
• 19 Top Rural Hospitals
• 48 Top Teaching Hospitals

The quality of patient care  across many areas of hospital performance is considered in establishing the qualifications for the award, including infection rates, practices for safer surgery, maternity care, and the hospital’s capacity to prevent medication errors. The rigorous standards are defined in each year’s Top Hospital Methodology.

“Being recognized as a Top Hospital is an extraordinary feat and we are honored to recognize Baylor St. Luke's this year,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “Despite the extraordinary pressure and strain of the COVID-19 pandemic, Baylor St. Luke’s has demonstrated an unwavering dedication to patients and to the Greater Houston community. We congratulate the board, staff and clinicians whose efforts made this honor possible.”

To qualify for the Top Hospitals distinction, hospitals must rank top among peers on the Leapfrog Hospital Survey, which assesses hospital performance on the highest standards for quality and patient safety, and achieve top performance in its category. To see the full list of institutions honored as 2020 Top Hospitals, visit www.leapfroggroup.org/tophospitals.

About The Leapfrog Group

Founded in 2000 by large employers and other purchasers, The Leapfrog Group is a national nonprofit organization driving a movement for giant leaps forward in the quality and safety of American health care. The flagship Leapfrog Hospital Survey collects and transparently reports hospital performance, empowering purchasers to find the highest-value care and giving consumers the lifesaving information, they need to make informed decisions. The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, Leapfrog’s other main initiative, assigns letter grades to hospitals based on their record of patient safety, helping consumers protect themselves and their families from errors, injuries, accidents and infections. 

About St. Luke’s Health – Texas Division

St. Luke’s Health is a fully-integrated network that provides care to the communities in Greater Houston,  Southeast Texas, and the Brazos Valley through 16 acute care hospitals and over 270 access points including numerous urgent care centers, freestanding emergency departments, and clinics conveniently located across the region. With a team of 11,000 employees and caregivers and more than 5,000 physicians, St. Luke’s Health is dedicated to a mission of enhancing community health through high-quality, cost-effective care. A joint venture with Baylor College of Medicine, St. Luke’s Health operates Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center in the Texas Medical Center, a leading academic health center with quaternary care and advanced specialists. St. Luke’s Health is part of CommonSpirit Health, a nonprofit, Catholic health system dedicated to advancing health for all people. It was created in February 2019 through the alignment of Catholic Health Initiatives and Dignity Health. Learn more at StLukesHealth.org.