Children's Hospital at Erlanger was one of 120 hospitals in the nation to be named a 2019 Top Hospital by The Leapfrog Group, a national watchdog organization focused on health care safety and quality.
Only 10 children's hospitals and one other Tennessee hospital, the rural Cumberland Medical Center in Crossville, were honored. Top hospitals on the list have better systems in place to prevent medication errors, higher quality of maternity care and lower infection rates, among other qualities, according to Leapfrog's website. The 2019 awards are based on survey data from 2018.
"The results mean that we've hit a national standard in Chattanooga, despite the fact that we've got a 45-year-old building, and that's because we've got an amazing children's hospital that I'm really proud of," said Don Mueller, CEO of Erlanger Children's Hospital.
Staff Photo by Robin Rudd/ Children's Hospital at Erlanger was one of 120 hospitals in the nation to receive top honors from the independent Leapfrog Group. The Hospital's new Children's Kennedy Outpatient Center at Erlanger Hospital was photographed on December 19, 2019.Mueller said that while the award is a great honor and signifies the children's hospital is statistically one of the best, "we've had something in the news recently that was a harm event."
He could not give an example due to patient privacy laws, but he was likely referring to a public Facebook post a mother made on Dec. 3 of her infant's foot, which she said was burned at Erlanger. The post received 31,000 comments and 67,000 shares.
"Every time one of these things happens, we sit down, we're briefed on everything and we respond ... and those are the things that the public doesn't hear about or see," Mueller said. "We want zero harm events. That's our goal. The reality is, we're a big place that takes care of thousands of children."
Attempts to reach the Facebook post's author were unsuccessful, but she wrote that the child "shouldn't have any long term effects besides scarring and possibly losing his pinky toenail."
Mueller said that one of the main reasons Erlanger won the award was its low rate of hospital acquired infections, such as bloodstream and urinary tract infections from catheters.
"They're just infections that can happen in the hospital, and our rates have been phenomenal over the last couple years," he said.
Other contributing factors include the hospital using technology that reduces medication errors by up to 88%, having imaging equipment that uses smaller doses of radiation and an intensive care unit physician who's always on staff, which many hospitals can't afford.
"Because of the size of the region we serve, we have the capacity to have docs in there 24-7. That results in reduced mortality, because someone is right there to save a kid's life if needed," Mueller said.
Staff Photo by Robin Rudd/ Children's Hospital at Erlanger was one of 120 hospitals in the nation to receive top honors from the independent Leapfrog Group. The Hospital's new Children's Kennedy Outpatient Center at Erlanger Hospital was photographed on December 19, 2019.Last year, Erlanger opened a new $40 million children's hospital facility, the Kennedy Outpatient Center. The project was the first step of Erlanger's long-term plan to build a new, comprehensive children's hospital.
Erlanger Health System CEO Will Jackson acknowledged the award during the Erlanger Board of Trustees meeting Thursday.
"This recognition stands out, especially since only 10 children's hospitals were honored nationally," Jackson said.
The meeting was brief, with no resolutions passed. The board approved new committee assignments, which Chairwoman Linda Moss Mines said was necessary "to hit the ground running in 2020."
Mines also welcomed the newest board member, Vicky Gregg, by saying "she is bringing a wealth of expertise to this board, and we will all be beneficiaries."
Contact Elizabeth Fite at efite@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6673.