In the latest nationwide hospital rankings, New York’s hospitals have fallen from 40th place to 47th.
A recently released ranking of hospitals across the country shows that New York’s hospitals are falling far behind in terms of patient safety. The highly anticipated report by the Leapfrog Group ranked New York in 47th place, down from its already poor showing in 2012, according to USA Today. Hospitals in New York City itself ranked particularly poorly, with three hospitals in the city being among the few in the entire country to receive an F grade. The ratings grade hospitals based on medical errors, infections, and injuries suffered by patients.
New York slips in rankings
The Leapfrog rankings are highly anticipated and analyze approximately 2,600 hospitals across the country, giving each a letter grade depending on how well they perform on a number of patient-safety metrics. Each state is then ranked according to the percentage of A-ranked hospitals they have. The rankings included 142 hospitals in New York alone.
As NBC New York reports, just seven of those 142 hospitals received an A grade, and none of those hospitals were in New York City itself (and just one was on Long Island). That meant New York had just 4.93 percent of its hospitals receive an A grade, one of the lowest percentages in the country, thus placing it in 47th position in the rankings. Even worse, only 15 hospitals across the country received an F grade and three of them are in New York City. Furthermore, 26 New York hospitals received a D grade.
Other states show improvements
New York’s neighbors did far better in the rankings. In New Jersey, for example, 44.12 percent of its hospitals received an A grade, putting it in 11th place overall. In Connecticut, meanwhile, 28 percent of the hospitals there received an A grade, which was good enough for 30th place.
New York was also one of the few states to actually fall in this year’s rankings. After 2012’s rankings, many hospitals made a concerted effort to improve their patient-safety metrics. Rhode Island hospitals had the most dramatic improvement, with the state going from 50th position in 2012 to the number one spot in 2017’s rankings. Sadly, New York’s hospitals failed to show similar improvements and the state slipped from 40th spot in 2012 to 47th this year.
Medical malpractice law
For those who may have been harmed by a medical professional’s alleged negligence or carelessness, it is important to get help as soon as possible. Medical malpractice cases are notoriously complex and they require a nuanced understanding of medical liability laws, how hospitals operate, and an ability to read medical charts and tests. A medical malpractice attorney can provide clients with these specialized skills and better help them pursue whatever compensation they may be entitled to.
