WE salute HCA-owned Mission Hospital in Asheville, Pardee UNC Health Care in Hendersonville, and AdventHealth Hendersonville, all of which earned “A” grades in the spring 2022 national hospital safety ratings by the nonprofit LeapFrog Group. Grades are updated twice annually — in the fall and spring

Of special note, for AdventHealth, the latest rating marked its 12th straight “A” grade.

And hurray for Pardee with its “A” score that was a great leap forward from a “B” in fall 2021. 

For those of us in Asheville (aka “The Paris of the South), we especially were delighted to read that, despite many highly publicized problems, Mission repeated its “A” score from fall 2021 in the spring 2022 ratings, after getting a “B” in spring 2021.

What’s more, Mission Hospital McDowell in Marion also earned an “A” grade in the spring 2022 ratings, but Haywood Regional Medical Center in Clyde, Rutherford Regional Medical Center in Rutherfordton, and Harris Regional Hospital in Sylva all received “B” grades.

The Leapfrog Group assigns an “A,” “B,” “C,” “D” or “F” grade to all general hospitals across the country. The grade uses more than 30 measures of safety data, including rates of preventable errors, injuries and infections, while also accounting for whether hospitals have systems in place to protect patients from harm.

Nationwide, 33 percent of nearly 3,000 general hospitals achieved “A” ratings. Much to its credit, North Carolina ranked first among all states for the percentage of A-rated hospitals, with 59.8 percent of all general hospitals earning the top grade. 

We heartily join in the jubilation at achieving the “A” grade as expressed by Chad Patrick, CEO of Mission Hospital, who recently said the following in a statement:

“I am so proud of the entire team at Mission Hospital and the exceptional care they provide every day to our patients. Earning the top safety grade solidifies the quality of care our colleagues provide and how important our patients are to our team.

Meanwhile, we are pleased to note that, regarding Mission’s “A” rating in particular, Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group, said the following in a statement:

“As our health care system continues to feel the strain of the pandemic, I thank the workforce and leadership of Mission Hospital for sustained commitment to patient safety, day in and day out. An ‘A’ Safety Grade is an outstanding achievement, and one that is not possible without a 24/7 effort by the entire health care workforce to protect patients from harm. This community should be proud.”

To Binder’s aforementioned comments, it feels very right to quote the great Motown soul singer-songwriter Smokey Robinson, who famously sang, “I Second That Emotion.”

Top-quality health care is critical to living a full, happy and productive life — and we feel truly blessed over the news about the “A” grades in safety earned through much hard work and diligence by the terrific staff and management at Mission, AdventHealth and Pardee hospitals.