Tift Regional Health System recently received top recognitions from three quality-certification bodies, including the Leapfrog Group, The Joint Commission and the National Committee for Quality Assurance. 
 
“Tift Regional is pleased to receive these honors because it reflects our commitment to quality and patient safety,” said Christopher K. Dorman, TRHS President/CEO. 
 
The national Leapfrog Group awarded Tift Regional Medical Center an A grade for the hospital’s efforts to keep patients safe from infections, errors and accidents.
 
The Leapfrog Group is a national not-for-profit organization that strives for safety, quality and affordability of healthcare in the U.S. by promoting transparency.   The Hospital Safety Score uses a wide range of evidence-based measures related to patient safety to calculate a numerical score for all eligible U.S. hospitals. The numerical safety score is then converted into a letter grade designed to give the public free and unbiased information they can use to protect themselves and their families.
 
“Our staff members work hard to foster a safe, compassionate environment of care,” said Dorman.  “This A grade validates achievement in preventing harm within the hospital, and we are proud of our clinicians and support staff.”
 
The scores are calculated using numerous measures, all based on publically-available data, to produce an overall “A,” “B,” “C,” “D,” or “F” score.  TRMC also volunteered to participate in the Leapfrog Group’s survey process.   The Hospital Safety Score signifies the overall capacity to keep patients safe from preventable harm.   To view Tift Regional Medical Center’s full score, visit www.hospitalsafetyscore.org.
 
TRMC also recently received the The Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval for Hospital Accreditation by demonstrating continuous compliance with its performance standards. The Gold Seal of Approval is a symbol of quality that reflects an organization’s commitment to providing safe and effective patient care.  TRMC underwent a rigorous onsite survey to achieve The Joint Commission accreditation.  The survey did not include the hospital system’s skilled nursing and nursing home services.
 
In addition, three of Tift Regional’s physician clinics received the highest level of national recognition as a Patient Centered Medical Home from the National Committee for Quality Assurance.   The three clinics include Nashville Primary Care in Nashville; Affinity Pediatrics in Tifton; and Ocilla Pediatrics in Ocilla.   TRHS now has a total of 18 practices with NCQA recognition.
 
PCMH is a model of care coordinated by the primary care physician office, where healthcare professionals work as a team to provide care that is individually determined to meet each patient's specific need. This approach fosters an environment in which patients develop and maintain an ongoing relationship with their primary care physician and a healthcare team who focus on enhanced care coordination and office-based disease management planning.  As such, the practice becomes the patient's "home" for preventive, chronic and ambulatory care.
 
Being a NCQA-recognized PCMH means the clinic voluntarily submitted documents to NCQA showing that it met specific quality standards and adhered to PCMH principles. 
 
“We achieve these levels of quality and safety by continuously learning and improving,” said Dorman.  “It’s important to reach for these high standards because we want our patients to be safe and well-cared for throughout our healthcare system.”