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Somerset Medical Center and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Earn "A" Ratings for Patient Safety by Hospital Safety Score

As Merger Nears Completion Both Institutions Show Unified Commitment to Patient Safety and Care

Somerville, N.J. (May 1, 2014) Somerset Medical Center andRobert Wood Johnson University Hospital will finalize their merger late this spring having both earned an “A” Spring 2014 Hospital Safety Score from The Leapfrog Group, an independent national nonprofit run by employers and other large purchasers of health benefits. Only 32 percent of the more than 2,500 hospitals analyzed nationwide earned an “A”, the highest patient safety rating, demonstrating a unified approach and commitment to patient safety and care.

The Hospital Safety Scores use 28 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to produce a single  “A,” “B,” “C,” “D,” or “F” score representing a hospital’s overall capacity to keep patients safe from preventable harm. The Hospital Safety Score was compiled under the guidance of the nation’s leading experts on patient safety and is designed to give the public information they can use to protect themselves and their families.

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“We maintain an unrelenting focus on patient safety and we are very pleased to have that focus translate into an “A” from The Leapfrog Group,” said Ken Bateman, president and CEO of Somerset Medical Center. “Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital shares our commitment to continually enhancing the quality of patient care and improving outcomes.  As our merger with Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital progresses we remain committed and united in enhancing the scope and quality of care available to residents in Central New Jersey.”

“Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital places a strong emphasis on quality and patient safety. Somerset Medical Center is equally dedicated to ensuring the same, high level of safety and care for patients as evidenced by our mutual “A” rating in the most recent Leapfrog Hospital Safety Survey,” added Stephen K. Jones, FACHE, President and CEO of Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital and Robert Wood Johnson Health System. “As New Jersey’s premier health system, we look forward to expanding our services into the Somerset community and to continuing to serve as a leader that encourages both transparency and the sharing of best practices to improve patient safety and the quality of health care services within the diverse communities we serve.” 

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“Safety should come first for our families when we pick a hospital, because errors and infections are common and deadly,” said Leah Binder, president & CEO of The Leapfrog Group, which produces the Hospital Safety Score. “No hospital is perfect, but we congratulate the Board, clinicians, administration, and staff of Somerset Medical Center and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospitals for achieving an “A” and showing us that you made the well-being of you patients your top priority.” 

To see Somerset Medical Center and / or Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital’s scores as they compare nationally and locally, visit the Hospital Safety Score website atwww.hospitalsafetyscore.org, which also provides information on how the public can protect themselves and loved ones during a hospital stay. People can also check their local hospital’s score on the free mobile app, available at www.hospitalsafetyscore.org.

For more information about Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital and Somerset Medical Center, go to www.rwjuh.edu orwww.somersetmedicalcenter.com. To learn more about the merger, please visit http://smc.rwjuh.info.

About Somerset Medical Center

Somerset Medical Center is a 355-bed acute care hospital in Somerville, providing comprehensive health care services to residents throughout Central New Jersey. It is nationally recognized as a Magnet® hospital for nursing excellence. The medical center’s Steeplechase Cancer Center is designated as a Comprehensive Community Cancer Center by the American College of Surgeons’ Commission on Cancer – a distinction achieved by only one in four hospitals nationwide that treat cancer patients. The Joint Surgery Institute at Somerset Medical Center has earned the Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval for total knee and total hip replacement surgery. The medical center is designated as a Primary Stroke Center by the Joint Commission and the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services. It is one of nine Medical Coordination Centers established by the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services to coordinate communication among emergency responders during a disaster situation. For more information about Somerset Medical Center, visitwww.somersetmedicalcenter.com.

About Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital

Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH) is a 600-bed academic medical center which is the flagship Cancer Hospital of Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey and the principal hospital of Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Brunswick, NJ. Robert Wood Johnson is an innovative leader in advancing state-of-the-art care. Its Centers of Excellence include cardiovascular care from minimally invasive heart surgery to transplantation, cancer care, and women’s and children’s care including The Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (www.bmsch.org). The hospital is also a Level 1 Trauma Center and serves as a national resource in its ground-breaking approaches to emergency preparedness. The hospital has earned significant national recognition for clinical quality and patient safety. RWJUH has been ranked among the best hospitals in America by U.S. News & World Report six times and has been selected by the publication as a high performing hospital in several specialties. The Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital has also ranked among the nation’s Best Children’s Hospitals by U.S. News & World Report for two consecutive years. The American College of Surgeons’ Commission on Cancer has rated RWJUH among the nation’s best comprehensive cancer centers and the hospital’s Comprehensive Stroke Center is certified by the Joint Commission to provide complex stroke care. The Leapfrog Group rated RWJUH as one of the 50 exceptional U.S. hospitals, as published in Consumers Digest magazine, and has given the hospital an “A” grade for safety and quality. Harvard University researchers, in a study commissioned by The

Commonwealth Fund, identified RWJUH as one of the top 10 hospitals in the nation for clinical quality. RWJUH is also a four-time recipient of the prestigious Magnet Award for Nursing Excellence. Visit us online at www.rwjuh.edu.

About The Leapfrog Group

The Hospital Safety Score (www.hospitalsafetyscore.org)  is an initiative of The Leapfrog Group (www.leapfroggroup.org), a national nonprofit organization using the collective leverage of large purchasers of health care to initiate breakthrough improvements in the safety, quality and affordability of health care for Americans. The flagship Leapfrog Hospital Survey allows purchasers to structure their contracts and purchasing to reward the highest performing hospitals. The Leapfrog Group was founded in November 2000 with support from the Business Roundtable and national funders and is now independently operated with support from its purchaser and other members.

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