UNC Health Southeastern Earns an “A” in Leapfrog, the Top National Grade for Patient Safety

UNC Health Southeastern has received an “A” Hospital Safety Grade from The Leapfrog Group, a national nonprofit that rates hospitals on how well they protect patients from harm.

The Spring 2026 grade recognizes hospitals that work to prevent medical errors, infections, injuries, and accidents. Leapfrog assigns letter grades from “A” to “F” to general hospitals across the country, using evidence-based measures that look only at patient safety.

“An ‘A’ Grade is a strong sign that UNC Health Southeastern is deeply committed to protecting patients from harm,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “We commend the leadership, board, clinicians, staff and volunteers for the role each played in earning this distinction.”

What Is the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade?

The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade is the only national ratings program focused solely on preventable medical errors, infections, and injuries. The program is peer-reviewed, transparent, and free to the public. Grades are updated twice a year, in the spring and fall. Scores are based on publicly available data and hospital-reported information on infection rates, problems after surgery, safe medication practices, staffing and communication, and use of proven safety protocols.

An “A” grade means a hospital performed better than most hospitals on these safety measures at the time of scoring.

What This Means for Patients and Community

Chris Ellington, UNC Health Southeastern President & CEO

The new “A” grade is a sign of sustained progress over multiple grading cycles, not just a one-time fix. It reflects better performance in areas such as infection prevention, safe surgery and treatment practices, systems that reduce the chance of errors, and early response to serious conditions like sepsis.

“In a community like ours, where the need is great and the stakes are high, this achievement says something very important: our patients are receiving care that meets the highest standards in the country right here at UNC Health Southeastern,” said UNC Health Southeastern President & CEO Chris Ellington.

Residents can look up any hospital’s latest grade at HospitalSafetyGrade.org and use that information as a starting point when talking with their doctor and family about where to receive care.

For the community, UNC Health Southeastern’s new “A” from The Leapfrog Group signals that the hospital has put stronger safety systems in place and is performing among the better hospitals nationwide on key patient safety measures. While no hospital can eliminate all risk, this rating shows meaningful, sustained progress in making care safer for patients close to home.

How UNC Health Southeastern Improved

Over the past several years, UNC Health Southeastern has made a series of coordinated changes aimed at reducing preventable harm and building a stronger safety culture.

Key initiatives included:

• Hospital-wide safety strategy focused on providing a safe environment for care by minimizing and avoiding potential complications.
• Preventing infections and other harm through:
  • Infection prevention: Tracking and managing infection rates using national benchmarks.
  • Hand hygiene: Regular audits of handwashing to improve compliance.
  • Fall prevention: Monitoring patient fall rates and setting targets to reduce them.
  • Pressure injury reduction: Focusing on hospital-acquired pressure injuries (bedsores), with clear goals and trend tracking.
• Responding early to serious illness, for example, related to sepsis care, ensuring doctors and nurses use standardized sepsis order sets so patients receive fast, evidence-based treatment, and tracking sepsis action plans as part of efforts to redesign care and prevent deterioration.
• Making care more consistent by developing and implementing standardized, evidence-based care pathways to reduce complications and make care more reliable from patient to patient.
• Strengthening safety culture through leadership rounding: Leaders visiting patient units regularly to spot risks early and support staff.
• A consistent “nursing bundle” of bedside practices to improve communication, catch problems sooner, and enhance patient experience.
• Learning from safety events such as encouraging staff to report incidents, then reviewing them and following through on improvements.

To explore UNC Health Southeastern’s full grade details and to find valuable tips for staying safe in the hospital, visit HospitalSafetyGrade.org.