North Knoxville Medical Center, Turkey Creek Medical Center Nationally Recognized

From the Knoxville Chamber:

December 22, 2020

Tennova Healthcare’s North Knoxville Medical Center and Turkey Creek Medical Center have each been awarded an ‘A’ in the fall 2020 Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, a national distinction recognizing the Tennova hospitals’ achievements in protecting patients from harm and providing safer healthcare.

The Leapfrog Group is an independent national watchdog organization committed to healthcare quality and safety. The Safety Grade assigns an ‘A’, ‘B’, ‘C’, ‘D’ or ‘F’ grade to all general hospitals across the country and is updated every six months. It is based on a hospital’s performance in preventing medical errors, injuries, accidents, infections and other harms to patients in their care.

“Safe, patient-centered care is a priority for our leadership and team members at Tennova Healthcare,” said Tony Benton, president and CEO of the Tennova East Market. “This A-grade reflects the longstanding commitment of our doctors, nurses and other clinicians to our five core values: safety, compassion, excellence, integrity and service. Our Knoxville hospitals have a demonstrated history of strong performance in clinical quality—and we are pleased to be recognized for our unwavering dedication to our patients and the highest standards of care.”

“We are extremely grateful to hospital leadership and healthcare workers who have remained steadfast in prioritizing patient safety as our nation battles COVID-19,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “This ‘A’ is a testament to the care and commitment of those who work for North Knoxville Medical Center and Turkey Creek Medical Center. With the current pandemic exposing existing flaws within the U.S. healthcare system, we appreciate you putting patient safety first. Lives depend on it.”

Developed under the guidance of a national expert panel, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses up to 27 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign grades to more than 2,600 U.S. acute-care hospitals twice per year. The Hospital Safety Grade’s methodology is peer-reviewed and fully transparent, and the results are free to the public.

North Knoxville Medical Center and Turkey Creek Medical Center were awarded an ‘A’ grade today when Leapfrog updated grades for fall 2020. To see the hospitals’ full grade details and access patient tips for staying safe in the hospital, visit hospitalsafetygrade.org. ]

About Tennova Healthcare

The Tennova Healthcare network of hospitals in East Tennessee includes Jefferson Memorial Hospital, LaFollette Medical Center, Newport Medical Center, North Knoxville Medical Center and Turkey Creek Medical Center with nearly 16,000 admissions, 410,000 outpatient visits and 125,000 emergency department visits each year. Learn more at www.Tennova.com.

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 and new Leapfrog Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC) Survey collect and transparently report hospital and ASC 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.

This press release was produced by the Knoxville Chamber. The views expressed are the author's own.