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St. Luke’s University Hospital in Bethlehem has been named for the second year in a row one of the nation’s Top Hospitals in the Teaching Hospital category by Leapfrog Group, an independent nonprofit hospital watchdog organization.

This recognition for safety is one of the health industry’s most prestigious honors. Unlike many other health care awards, it is based entirely on an independent, scientific review of objective data.

“St. Luke’s is proud to be the only health care network in the region to have earned Leapfrog’s Top Hospital recognition in the Major Teaching Hospital category for two years running,” St. Luke’s University Hospital President Carol Kuplen said. “In fact, not only is St. Luke’s the only hospital in the Lehigh Valley to have earned Leapfrog’s highest honor in both 2018 and 2019, it is one of only six hospitals in all of Pennsylvania to have qualified for the honor this year.”

“This award is a credit to St. Luke’s outstanding leadership, providers, nurses and hospital staff and volunteers who day in and day out maintain an unwavering focus on quality and patient satisfaction. I couldn’t be prouder to work with such wonderful caregivers.”

Leapfrog's Top Hospital award recognizes the highest performing hospitals across many areas of hospital care, including infection rates, maternity care and the hospital’s capacity to prevent medication errors. In 2019, only 118 hospitals in total were awarded nationally across the four categories: Top Teaching, Top General, Top Rural and Top Children's hospitals. 

The Leapfrog award is further acknowledgement of St. Luke’s University Health Network’s commitment to excellence. Earlier this year, St. Luke’s was named one of the nation’s 100 Top Hospitals in the Major Teaching Hospital category by IBM Watson Health. This is the fifth year in a row and the seventh time overall that St. Luke’s has achieved the honor. Like the Leapfrog Top Hospital award, IBM Watson Health is based entirely on an independent, scientific review of objective data.

Additionally, St. Luke’s hospitals are the only hospitals in the Lehigh Valley to earn Medicare’s top four- and five-star ratings for quality, efficiency and patient satisfaction in 2019.

For the Leapfrog Top Hospital award, data is gathered and publicly reported through the Leapfrog Hospital Survey. The survey compares hospitals' performance on national standards of patient safety, quality, efficiency and management structures that prevent errors, providing the most comprehensive picture of how patients fare at individual institutions. The data collected also enables hospitals to benchmark their progress toward Leapfrog's standards and measure the care they deliver.

“Leapfrog is honored to spotlight the hospitals across the nation that have truly gone above and beyond in their pursuit of excellence. Our Top Hospital award, one of the most prestigious in the US, recognizes hospitals for ensuring their facilities prioritize safety and quality in patient care,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “The standards achieved by Top Hospitals reflect the high expectations set by Leapfrog and its expert panels, which starts with a commitment to transparency. We also commend all hospitals that demonstrated this commitment by participating in the 2019 Leapfrog Hospital Survey.”