Bon Secours wins Zero Harm Award for commitment to patient safety amid COVID-19 pandemic
November 15, 2021
Bon Secours St. Francis Eastside is proud to be recognized as a 2021 Zero Harm Award recipient for eliminating medical errors and creating a culture of high reliability throughout our facility by the South Carolina Hospital Association (SCHA). Despite the challenges of a global pandemic, which continues to put stress on staffing and equipment, Bon Secours continues to rise to the challenge of putting patient safety first.
SCHA’s Zero Harm Awards were started in 2014 to celebrate hospitals who have had extended harm-free stretches in major areas of surgery and other common medical procedures. These awards demonstrate that a culture of patient safety and a commitment to providing highly reliable care are cornerstones of South Carolina hospitals.
“The Zero Harm program is a prime example of a successful partnership between the public and private sector that improves the quality of life in South Carolina,” says Karen Reynolds, Executive Director of Innovation at SCHA. “As medical errors and other types of harm continue to be a major concern across the country, South Carolina has developed a blueprint for reducing avoidable harm in our healthcare facilities that other states can follow.”
This is also the inaugural year of South Carolina’s Drive to Zero Suicide program, an effort by SCHA and the South Carolina Department of Mental Health to recognize state healthcare facilities for adopting specific Zero Suicide strategies into their culture of care. South Carolina has a higher number of suicides than the national average and had seen a rise in the suicide rate even before the pandemic. Both Bon Secours St. Francis Downtown and Bon Secours St. Francis Eastside were among the 20 facilities recognized for using strategies that include evidence-based suicide prevention training for staff, formal policies to screen patients, enhanced safety planning and a follow-up process for patients with a local community mental health center or other provider.
“We are tremendously proud of the commitment our facility and staff have to eliminating harm and maintaining our culture of high reliability, even in these most trying and demanding of times,” says Matt Caldwell, president of Bon Secours St. Francis Health System. “These Zero Harm Awards are a testament to the strength and resilience our entire team has shown over this past two years. We are grateful for this recognition and will continue to support our community every way we can.”
The 223 Zero Harm Awards given out in 2021 represent 314,414 patient days without harm with a projected savings of $5.72 million dollars. For more information about this year’s awards and a full list of winners, go to scha.org/ZeroHarm.
About Bon Secours
Bon Secours St. Francis Health System is part of Bon Secours Mercy Health, one of the 20 largest health systems in the United States and the fifth-largest Catholic health system in the country. The ministry’s quality, compassionate care is provided by more than 60,000 associates serving communities in Florida, Kentucky, Maryland, New York, Ohio, South Carolina, and Virginia, as well as throughout Ireland. Bon Secours St. Francis Health System provides compassionate medical care to thousands of area residents through Bon Secours St. Francis Downtown and Bon Secours St. Francis Eastside, as well as a network of primary and specialty care practices, and ambulatory care sites across the Greenville region. Consistent with its commitment to serve each patient with dignity, Bon Secours Mercy Health provides nearly $2 million per day in community benefit. The mission of Bon Secours St. Francis Health System is to extend the compassionate ministry of Jesus by improving the health and well-being of our communities and bring good help to those in need, especially people who are poor, dying and underserved. For more information, visit BonSecours.com.
