Safety first at Newport Hospital

Newport Hospital is the only hospital in Rhode Island to be named a Distinguished Hospital for Patient Safety by HealthGrades, a national health care ratings company. Five other hospitals in New England made the 2007 list, which was released in April.

HealthGrades researches and reports hospital patient safety information to the public, using data from nearly 5,000 hospitals around the country.

Hospital vice president for medical affairs Dr. Terrence McWilliams is responsible for the hospital's patient safety program. "The medical community has implemented many patient safety improvement programs in recent years," he says, "with the goal of eliminating preventable incidents that could compromise patient care. We're very pleased to be among a small percentage of this country's hospitals to be named on the HealthGrades list."