Westfield Hospital Awarded Coveted 2013 Leapfrog Top Hospital Distinction Recognized Honor for Safety and Quality

The Leapfrog Group named Westfield Hospital, at 4815 W. Tilghman Street in South Whitehall Township, for the first time to its annual list of Top Hospitals. The announcement came at Leapfrog’s Annual Meeting in Arlington, Virginia.

December 3rd at 12:01 a.m., the exact date and time of the Leapfrog announcement, was also the time that Westfield Hospital closed in preparation for new ownership. Westfield Hospital Medical Center has been acquired by Lehigh Valley Health Network. In early 2014, Lehigh Valley Health Network will transition both Westfield Hospital and Westfield Surgery Center into a “Center of Excellence for Orthopedic Medicine.”

“We are honored to achieve this distinction; our goal was to always offer the utmost in safety and quality care to our patients and community we served. This award is a tremendous tribute to the professional work, dedication, and loyalty of every one of our employees,” remarked Westfield Hospital’s CEO, Yasin Khan, M.D.
“The LeapFrog Group is constantly striving to improve patient safety, nationally. This year, Westfield Hospital was named to the prestigious list of top Hospitals in the country which included patient safety and satisfaction metrics, infection control, core measures, medication safety, and a CPOE/EMR (electronic medical records). The physicians, nurses, and staff are pleased to receive this award that only the top 5 percent of hospitals in the country receive. Our team is grateful to accept this award on December 3, which is also the final day of patient care services. It has been an honor and a privilege to take care of our community,” stated Cheryl Kreider, Chief Operating Officer, of Westfield Hospital.

"The field of hospitals considered for this year’s elite Leapfrog Top Hospital distinction was more competitive than ever. By achieving the Top Hospital accolade, Westfield Hospital has demonstrated exemplary performance across all areas of quality and patient safety that are analyzed on the Leapfrog Hospital Survey,” said Leah Binder, President & CEO of The Leapfrog Group.

Westfield Hospital was selected as a Top Hospital out of a record number of 1,324 hospitals participating in The Leapfrog Group’s annual survey. The list includes 22 Top Rural Hospitals, 55 Top Urban Hospitals, and 13 Top Children’s Hospitals. Westfield Hospital was also the only hospital in the Greater Lehigh Valley to achieve this distinction.

Hospitals reaching this achievement include academic medical centers, teaching hospitals, children’s hospitals, and community hospitals in rural, suburban, and urban settings. The selection is based on the results of the Leapfrog Group’s annual hospital survey, which measures hospitals’ performance on patient safety and quality, focusing on three critical areas of hospital care: how patients fare, resource use, and management structures in place to prevent errors.

The results of the survey are posted on a website (http://www.leapfroggroup.org/cp) open to patients and families, the public, employers, and other purchasers of health care.

About Westfield Hospital
Westfield Hospital is a Joint Commission “gold standard” accredited acute care general hospital that opened in June 2007 and closed December 3, 2013. Westfield Hospital recently earned the 2013 Patient Safety Excellence Award from HealthGrades.com and was ranked #1 in PA for spine surgery.