Quality & Safety

A commitment to safe, high-quality healthcare

Our Commitment to Quality and Safety

At Lahey Hospital & Medical Center, we are dedicated to providing patients with care that meets the highest standards in quality and safety.

Strategic Plan for Quality and Safety

Our strategic plan outlines the goals and metrics we use to further deepen our commitment to patient safety. It includes:

Evidence-based practices and a culture of safety and accountability to reduce hospital-acquired infections
Comprehensive mobility program to minimize falls with injury
Proactive risk assessments and advanced wound care practices to reduce pressure injuries
Enhanced patient experience through compassionate care, effective communication and continuous feedback

We’re continuously providing patients and staff with the information and resources they need to put safety first.

At the end of the day, our goal is to reduce all preventable harm to zero.

ICU Staffing Data

The ratio of the average number of patients to the number of nurses in an ICU is an important indicator of quality and safety. At Lahey Hospital & Medical Center, we track these numbers quarterly and make them available to patients, colleagues and regulatory agencies.

Reporting Period | Q3 2024 Jul - Sep

ICU Name	ICU Type	Avg. Daily Patient Census	Avg. Daily Nurse Census	Nurse-to-Patient Ratio
Medical ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	9.880434783	7.336186594	1 : 1.346807998
SICU	Adult Critical Care (Surgical)	16.66304348	12.62660779	1 : 1.319676968
5 Central ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	6.119565217	4.731005435	1 : 1.293502048
Coronary Care Unit	Adult Critical Care (Coronary Care)	6.5	5.080348732	1 : 1.279439728
Neurosciences ICU	Adult Critical Care (Neuro ICU)	7.456521739	5.058999094	1 : 1.473912448

Reporting Period | Q2 2024 Apr - Jun

ICU Name	ICU Type	Avg. Daily Patient Census	Avg. Daily Nurse Census	Nurse-to-Patient Ratio
Medical ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	9.956043956	7.196199634	1 : 1.383514141
SICU	Adult Critical Care (Surgical)	17.56043956	12.30274725	1 : 1.427359207
5 Central ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	6.527472527	4.957005495	1 : 1.316817691
Coronary Care Unit	Adult Critical Care (Coronary Care)	6.593406593	5.157637363	1 : 1.278377313
Neurosciences ICU	Adult Critical Care (Neuro ICU)	7.186813187	4.89106685	1 : 1.469375375

Reporting Period | Q1 2024 Jan - Mar

ICU Name	ICU Type	Avg. Daily Patient Census	Avg. Daily Nurse Census	Nurse-to-Patient Ratio
Medical ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	9.978021978	7.336053114	1 : 1.360134915
SICU	Adult Critical Care (Surgical)	17.10989011	11.99124084	1 : 1.426865688
5 Central ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	6.626373626	4.89220696	1 : 1.354475328
Coronary Care Unit	Adult Critical Care (Coronary Care)	6.406593407	5.14922619	1 : 1.244185664
Neurosciences ICU	Adult Critical Care (Neuro ICU)	7.725274725	5.016996337	1 : 1.539820683

Reporting Period | Q4 2023 Oct - Dec

ICU Name	ICU Type	Avg. Daily Patient Census	Avg. Daily Nurse Census	Nurse-to-Patient Ratio
Medical ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	10.80435	7.02479	1 : 1.53803
SICU	Adult Critical Care (Surgical)	17.72826	12.51993	1 : 1.41600
5 Central ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	6.60870	4.87119	1 : 1.35669
Coronary Care Unit	Adult Critical Care (Coronary Care)	6.56522	4.97158	1 : 1.32055
Neurosciences ICU	Adult Critical (Neuro ICU)	7.80435	4.92245	1 : 1.58546

Reporting Period | Q3 2023 Jul - Sep

ICU Name	ICU Type	Avg. Daily Patient Census	Avg. Daily Nurse Census	Nurse-to-Patient Ratio
Medical ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	10.08696	7.31168	1 : 1.37957
SICU	Adult Critical Care (Surgical)	16.27174	11.98492	1 : 1.35768
5 Central ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	6.18478	4.66421	1 : 1.32601
Coronary Care Unit	Adult Critical Care (Coronary Care)	6.34783	4.86411	1 : 1.30503
Neurosciences ICU	Adult Critical (Neuro ICU)	7.58696	4.92245	1 : 1.54130

Reporting Period | Q2 2023 Apr - Jun

ICU Name	ICU Type	Avg. Daily Patient Census	Avg. Daily Nurse Census	Nurse-to-Patient Ratio
Medical ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	9.67033	7.61239	1 : 1.27034
SICU	Adult Critical Care (Surgical)	16.10989	12.09965	1 : 1.33143
5 Central ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	6.62637	5.70533	1 : 1.16143
Coronary Care Unit	Adult Critical Care (Coronary Care)	6.30769	4.84067	1 : 1.30306
Neurosciences ICU	Adult Critical (Neuro ICU)	7.18681	4.81878	1 : 1.49142

Reporting Period | Q1 2023 Jan - Mar

ICU Name	ICU Type	Avg. Daily Patient Census	Avg. Daily Nurse Census	Nurse-to-Patient Ratio
Medical ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	10.13333	7.30517	1 : 1.38715
SICU	Adult Critical Care (Surgical)	17.57778	12.81466	1 : 1.37169
5 Central ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	6.56667	5.16474	1 : 1.27144
Coronary Care Unit	Adult Critical Care (Coronary Care)	6.64444	5.08471	1 : 1.30675
Neurosciences ICU	Adult Critical (Neuro ICU)	7.38889	5.16317	1 : 1.43108

Reporting Period | Q4 2022 Oct - Dec

ICU Name	ICU Type	Avg. Daily Patient Census	Avg. Daily Nurse Census	Nurse-to-Patient Ratio
Medical ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	10.45652	7.38197	1 : 1.41649
SICU	Adult Critical Care (Surgical)	18.28261	12.75385	1 : 1.43350
5 Central ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	6.75000	5.14912	1 : 1.31090
Coronary Care Unit	Adult Critical Care (Coronary Care)	6.60870	5.62356	1 : 1.17518
Neurosciences ICU	Adult Critical (Neuro ICU)	7.63043	5.10318	1 : 1.49523

Reporting Period | Q3 2022 Jul - Sep

ICU Name	ICU Type	Avg. Daily Patient Census	Avg. Daily Nurse Census	Nurse-to-Patient Ratio
Medical ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	10.11957	7.52739	1 : 1.34437
SICU	Adult Critical Care (Surgical)	17.50000	12.25872	1 : 1.42756
5 Central ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	5.96739	4.79854	1 : 1.24359
Coronary Care Unit	Adult Critical Care (Coronary Care)	5.91304	4.93546	1 : 1.19807

Reporting Period | Q2 2022 Apr - Jun

ICU Name	ICU Type	Avg. Daily Patient Census	Avg. Daily Nurse Census	Nurse-to-Patient Ratio
Medical ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	10.40659	7.55104	1 : 1.37817
SICU	Adult Critical Care (Surgical)	17.24176	12.22498	1 : 1.41037
5 Central ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	6.48352	5.07193	1 : 1.27831
Coronary Care Unit	Adult Critical Care (Coronary Care)	6.61538	6.07938	1 : 1.08817

Reporting Period | Q1 2022 Jan - Mar

ICU Name	ICU Type	Avg. Daily Patient Census	Avg. Daily Nurse Census	Nurse-to-Patient Ratio
Medical ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	10.61111	7.65745	1 : 1.38572
SICU	Adult Critical Care (Surgical)	18.01111	12.78924	1 : 1.40830
5 Central ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	6.70000	5.07473	1 : 1.32027
Coronary Care Unit	Adult Critical Care (Coronary Care)	6.47778	5.40485	1 : 1.19851

Reporting Period | Q4 2021 Oct- Dec

ICU Name	ICU Type	Avg. Daily Patient Census	Avg. Daily Nurse Census	Nurse-to-Patient Ratio
Medical ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	10.46739	7.83124	1 : 1.33662
SICU	Adult Critical Care (Surgical)	17.38043	11.51262	1 : 1.50969
5 Central ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	6.54348	5.61873	1 : 1.16458
Coronary Care Unit	Adult Critical Care (Coronary Care)	7.00000	5.10584	1 : 1.37098

Reporting Period | Q3 2021 Jul - Sep

ICU Name	ICU Type	Avg. Daily Patient Census	Avg. Daily Nurse Census	Nurse-to-Patient Ratio
Medical ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	10.19565	6.98752	1 : 1.45912
SICU	Adult Critical Care (Surgical)	17.70652	12.31130	1 : 1.43823
5 Central ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	6.50000	5.43776	1 : 1.19535
Coronary Care Unit	Adult Critical Care (Coronary Care)	6.82609	4.88618	1 : 1.39702

Reporting Period | Q2 2021 Apr - Jun

ICU Name	ICU Type	Avg. Daily Patient Census	Avg. Daily Nurse Census	Nurse-to-Patient Ratio
Medical ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	10.52747	8.79930	1 : 1.19640
SICU	Adult Critical Care (Surgical)	18.87912	15.64902	1 : 1.20641
5 Central ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	6.89011	6.30517	1 : 1.09277
Coronary Care Unit	Adult Critical Care (Coronary Care)	6.91209	6.41400	1 : 1.07766

Reporting Period | Q1 2021 Jan - Mar

ICU Name	ICU Type	Avg. Daily Patient Census	Avg. Daily Nurse Census	Nurse-to-Patient Ratio
Medical ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	10.74725	9.53308	1 : 1.12736
SICU	Adult Critical Care (Surgical)	17.45055	15.42705	1 : 1.13117
5 Central ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	6.74725	7.17969	1 : 0.93977
Coronary Care Unit	Adult Critical Care (Coronary Care)	6.92308	6.65811	1 : 1.03980

Reporting Period | Q4 2020 Oct – Dec

ICU Name	ICU Type	Avg. Daily Patient Census	Avg. Daily Nurse Census	Nurse-to-Patient Ratio
Medical ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	8.52174	1.85438	1 : 4.59546
SICU	Adult Critical Care (Surgical)	19.34783	5.19325	1 : 3.72557
5 Central ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	6.90217	2.23969	1 : 3.08176
Coronary Care Unit	Adult Critical Care (Coronary Care)	6.83696	2.38433	1 : 2.86745

Reporting Period | Q3 2020 Jul – Sep

ICU Name	ICU Type	Avg. Daily Patient Census	Avg. Daily Nurse Census	Nurse-to-Patient Ratio
Medical ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	6.97826	5.76417	1 : 1.21063
SICU	Adult Critical Care (Surgical)	19.22826	15.72575	1 : 1.22272
5 Central ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	6.34783	5.42876	1 : 1.16930
Coronary Care Unit	Adult Critical Care (Coronary Care)	6.45652	5.42048	1 : 1.19113

Reporting Period | Q2 2020 Apr – Jun

ICU Name	ICU Type	Avg. Daily Patient Census	Avg. Daily Nurse Census	Nurse-to-Patient Ratio
Medical ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	9.00000	8.90243	1 : 1.01096
SICU	Adult Critical Care (Surgical)	18.32967	12.93791	1 : 1.41674
5 Central ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	5.84615	4.51695	1 : 1.29427
Coronary Care Unit	Adult Critical Care (Coronary Care)	5.63736	5.31788	1 : 1.06008

Reporting Period | Q1 2020 Jan – Mar

ICU Name	ICU Type	Avg. Daily Patient Census	Avg. Daily Nurse Census	Nurse-to-Patient Ratio
Medical ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	8.86813	7.25933	1 : 1.22162
SICU	Adult Critical Care (Surgical)	19.10989	15.13273	1 : 1.26282
5 Central ICU	Adult Critical Care (Medical)	6.91209	5.58266	1 : 1.23814
Coronary Care Unit	Adult Critical Care (Coronary Care)	6.68132	5.68418	1 : 1.17542

Awards

AAMC Telehealth Equity Award 2024

Lahey Hospital & Medical Center has been named one of five programs who will receive the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC)’s 2024 Telehealth Equity Catalyst (TEC) Awards. Led by Jagriti Upadhyay, MD, the winning program is titled “Community Diabetes Care Enhancement Program at Dimock Community Health Center (DCHC).”

AHA Get with the Guidelines Gold Plus and Stroke Honor Role Elite 2024

Get With the Guidelines awarded Lahey Hospital & Medical Center the Gold Plus Award, its highest award for stroke quality measures. This achievement recognizes hospitals that provide the best stroke treatment across numerous metrics.

Massachusetts Department of Public Health Coverdell Achievement Awards 2024

We are recognized as a Paul Coverdell National Acute Stroke Program. This award is funded by the CDC and is named after late U.S. Senator Paul Coverdell, who passed away in 2000 as a result of a stroke. The program’s mission is to track and improve care quality for acute stroke patients.

Organ Donation - Silver 1 Medal of Honor

Lahey Hospital & Medical Center's Transplantation Program is among a select group recognized by the Health Resources and Services Administration for success in increasing organ donation rates.

Accreditations

Bariatric Surgery Center Network Accreditation

Our Center for Surgical Weight Loss is accredited as a Level 1A facility by the Bariatric Surgery Center Network Accreditation Program. The American College of Surgeons awards Level 1A accreditation to hospitals that have high-volume practices and can manage the most challenging and complex patients.

Breast Health Center Accreditation

The Comprehensive Breast Health Center at Lahey Hospital & Medical Center is accredited by the National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers, a group of national professional organizations dedicated to improving the quality of care for people with breast cancer and other breast diseases. We are one of nineteen centers in Massachusetts to have earned this accreditation.

Comprehensive Stroke Program DNV Accreditation

Our Comprehensive Stroke Center is certified by DNV Healthcare in recognition of our commitment to stroke care excellence. Because of this certification, patients can have the highest confidence that the care they receive at Lahey Hospital & Medical Center meets the highest quality and safety standards.

The Joint Commission

We are fully accredited by The Joint Commission, a national leader in setting quality and safety standards for healthcare.

We consistently earn the Joint Commission's Gold Seal of Approval, which shows we have met or exceeded their high standards.

Designations

Level 1 Trauma Center

The Joseph C. Corkery Emergency Center at Lahey Hospital & Medical Center is the only Level 1 Trauma Center north of Boston. Our board-certified emergency physicians and nurses provide advanced emergency care to patients with acute injuries and illnesses.

Magnet Recognition

Lahey Hospital & Medical Center received the prestigious Magnet Hospital for Nursing Excellence designation from the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). Magnet recognition is a rare achievement and demonstrates our commitment to providing compassionate and evidence-based nursing to our patients.

NICHE Designation

Lahey Hospital & Medical Center is committed to meeting the unique needs of older adults and their loved ones. We provide evidence-based, age-sensitive nursing care for our older patients, which lead to the best possible clinical outcomes. Because of this commitment to elder care, we are proud to be accredited as a Nurses Improving Care for Healthsystems Elders) (NICHE) organization.

Recognitions

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

Lahey Hospital & Medical Center has received five-out-of-five stars from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in its annual quality and safety assessment. Less than 10 percent of the over 4,600 hospitals that were assessed received five stars as their Overall Hospital Quality Star Rating.

Healthgrades Top 50 Best Hospitals

We were recognized by Healthgrades as one of the top 50 hospitals in the United States, making us the only hospital in Massachusetts to earn this recognition. Healthgrades bases its evaluations on clinical outcomes to determine overall clinical excellence.

The Leapfrog Group

The Leapfrog Group is a national nonprofit organization that surveys hospitals on their quality, safety and patient outcomes. Its reports show factors such as the use of computerized medication ordering, hand washing, the use of specially trained doctors in intensive care units and other practices that reduce medical mistakes.

We fully meet Leapfrog standards for medication safety, inpatient care management and other important measures. Lahey continues to receive high ratings in The Leapfrog Group’s Patient Safety Scores.

US News & World Report

Each year US News & World Report's hospital rankings help patients find quality care. Their recent rankings place us in the top six in Massachusetts. We also ranked "High Performing" in Gastroenterology & GI Surgery.

Vizient Anchor Hospital for HCHE

Lahey Hospital & Medical Center received Anchor designation in Vizient’s Holistic Approach to Health Equity Benchmarking Survey, demonstrating our ability to drive sustainable change and mitigate inequities in pursuit of our diversity, health equity and inclusion objectives.

Nationally Recognized Healthcare

Our Landsman Heart & Vascular Center has been consistently named by Thomson Reuters as one of the 50 top cardiovascular hospitals in the United States. This honor is awarded to cardiovascular centers with achievements such as low complication rates, better survival rates, shorter hospital stays and fewer readmissions.

Designated as a primary stroke service by the Massachusetts DPH, our Stroke Center received the American Stroke Association's Get With the Guidelines-Stroke Gold Plus Achievement Award. This award recognizes our commitment to and success in providing excellent care for stroke patients.

Our Stroke Center has also earned a place on the American Stroke Association's Target: Stroke Honor Roll for improving stroke care. For at least three consecutive months, hospitals on the honor roll demonstrated 50 percent or higher adherence to all relevant target measures in addition to current Bronze, Silver or Gold Get With the Guidelines – Heart Failure or Stroke recognition status.