Progress in Adopting Safety Initiatives

The Leapfrog Group Quality and Safety Survey Template

The information from The Leapfrog Group Quality and Safety Survey should be presented by each hospital according to the following template:

Hospital Safe Practices: Surgical Site Infection and Hand Washing

The following questions come from the Leapfrog Group’s Hospital Quality and Safety Survey.  The Leapfrog Group consists of nearly 200 large private and public organizations that provide health benefits for more than 39 million U.S. employees, retirees and dependents.  The Group’s goal is to improve health care safety.  

The Quality and Safety Survey is based on 30 hospital “safe practices” that were identified by the National Quality Forum.  Here is how the hospital responded to the questions on two of those safe practices -- Hand Washing and Surgical Site Infection:  

Safe Practice:  Surgical Site Infection Prevention

Evaluate each pre-operative patient in light of his or her planned surgical procedure for the risk of surgical site infection (SSI), and implement appropriate antibiotic prophylaxis and other preventive measures based on that evaluation.

Safety Objective: Prevent person-to-person transmission of infections.

Safe Practice: Hand Washing

Decontaminate hands with either a hygienic hand rub or by washing with a disinfectant soap prior to and after direct contact with the patient or objects immediately around the patient.

Safety Objective:  Prevent person-to-person transmission of infections.