New Hospital Safety Scores, which assign A, B, C, D and F letter grades to hospitals nationwide and provide the most complete picture of patient safety in the U.S. health care system, were announced recently by The Leapfrog Group, a national patient safety watchdog.

VCU Health Community Memorial Hospital, in South Hill, received an A, ranking among the safest hospitals in the United States.

“The ‘A’ grade that CMH received is due to the dedication and commitment on the part of all members of the CMH team. I am proud of their continued commitment towards making CMH one of the safest hospitals in the commonwealth and in the country,” said W. Scott Burnette, CEO, VCU Health CMH.

“Avoidable deaths in hospitals should be the number one concern of our health care leaders. Hospitals that earn an ‘A’ from Leapfrog are leaders in saving lives, and we commend them and urge their continued vigilance,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group.

Developed under the guidance of Leapfrog’s Blue Ribbon Expert Panel, the hospital safety score uses 30 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign A, B, C, D and F grades to more than 2,500 U.S. hospitals twice per year. It is calculated by top patient safety experts, peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public.

For the first time, the Hospital Safety Score includes five measures of patient-reported experience with the hospital as well as two of the most common infections, C.diff and MRSA.

To see VCU Health CMH’s full score, and to access consumer-friendly tips for patients and loved ones visiting the hospital, visit www.hospitalsafetyscore.org or follow The Hospital Safety Score on Twitter or Facebook. Consumers can also download the free Hospital Safety Score mobile app for Apple and Android devices.