Mercy Hospital Washington
Contact: Kate Miller
636-239-8885 office
314-853-3014 cell
kate.miller@mercy.net
September 3, 2013
Mercy Hospital Washington Scores High for Safer Surgeries
Data shows hospital is a leader at keeping patients safe
Washington, Mo. – Mercy Hospital Washington is exceeding other hospitals at keeping patients
safe from infections and other risks during and after surgery, according to a data analysis
performed by a national consumer information magazine.
Consumer Reports investigated data and ranked hospitals across the country for their surgical
safety and quality results. Mercy Hospital Washington scores rank the hospital in the top 8 of the
56 hospitals listed in Missouri and higher than many hospitals across the nation.
“This ranking tells patients Mercy Hospital Washington follows reliable protocols to minimize
surgical risks and complications,” said surgeon Tom Riechers, MD, chief of staff and vice president
of medical affairs. “It shows we work hard at keeping patients safe, and that brings comfort to them
and their loved ones.”
Surgical risks can be minimal or life threatening. They can include blood clots, drug-resistant
infections, stroke and heart attacks. Mercy Hospital Washington has taken steps to minimize those
risks. They include screening patients for Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA),
reducing the use of urinary catheters, giving surgery-specific antibiotics to prevent infections,
medication to prevent blood clots and beta-blockers for patients at risk for heart attack or stroke.
As a result, Mercy Hospital Washington has maintained zero MRSA infections in the intensive care
unit (ICU) since 2010 and zero central (intravenous) line infections for seven years.
The hospital has received much recognition for its quality and safety efforts. It earned an “A” grade
based on preventable medical errors, accidents and infections from the Leapfrog Group this year.
It was ranked by Consumer Reports in 2012 as a top “safe hospital” and in 2010 as a top hospital
at keeping patients in the ICU from contracting life-threatening infections linked to the presence of
central (intravenous) lines.
In 2011, the hospital was recognized by Primaris for maintaining zero MRSA infections in the
ICU. The hospital was a 2010 recipient of the Safe Patient Care Award for influenza mitigation from
Missouri’s Center for Patient Safety.
Mercy is the sixth largest Catholic health care system in the U.S. and serves more than 3 million people annually. Mercy
includes 32 hospitals, 300 outpatient facilities, 39,000 co-workers and more than 2,000 integrated physicians in
Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma. Mercy also has outreach ministries in Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.
For more about Mercy, visit www.mercy.net.
Mercy Hospital Washington is a member of Mercy. It is a 187-bed hospital located just 50 miles southwest of St. Louis,
Mo., and serves all or parts of Crawford, Franklin, Gasconade, St. Charles, St. Louis and Warren counties. The Hospital
offers comprehensive emergency, heart, cancer, surgical, obstetric and pediatric services and physicians who are part of
Mercy Clinic.
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