Baptist Hospital Of Miami Review

Updated April 2021

The Baptist Hospital of Miami is one of the most respected medical centers in South Florida. It is a 720-bed hospital located just 20 minutes from Miami International Airport and has virtually all specialties – back/spine care, cancer, cardiology and heart surgery, geriatrics, gynecology, obstetrics/maternity, neonatal intensive care, neurology and neurosurgery, physical rehabilitation and urology, among others.

Baptist Hospital of Miami is part of the Baptist Health Foundation, a not-for-profit organization supported by philanthropy. It is home to three centers of excellence on its campus – Miami Cancer Institute, Miami Cardiac and Vascular Institute, and Neuroscience Institute. It has a children’s emergency center, too.

Baptist Hospital of Miami is the recipient of People Magazine’s Companies that Care Award for 2020 and has been chosen as one of the world’s most ethical companies in a survey conducted by EthiSphere in 2020.

U.S. News

Overview Of Baptist Hospital Of Miami

U.S. News has ranked Baptist Hospital of Miami No. 5 in Florida. It holds the No. 1 ranking in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale area.

Baptist Hospital of Miami is rated high-performing in six adult specialties and in seven procedures and conditions.

Rankings And Ratings Of Baptist Hospital Of Miami

• Cancer
  Miami Cancer Institute at Baptist Hospital of Miami
  • National rank: High performing
  • Overall score: 45.8/100
  • Conditions/procedures applicable to cancer:
    • Colon cancer surgery: 5/5 (high performing)
    • Lung cancer surgery: 3/5 (average score)
• Cardiology And Heart Surgery
  Miami Cardiac and Vascular Institute at Baptist Hospital of Miami
  • National rank: Not ranked
  • Overall score: 40.8/100
  • Conditions/procedures applicable to cardiology and heart surgery:
    • Heart failure: 5/5 (high performing)
    • Abdominal, aortic, aneurysm repair: 5/5 (high performing)
    • Heart bypass surgery: 5/5 (high performing)
    • Aortic valve surgery: 3/5 (average score)
    • Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR): 3/5 (average score)
• Orthopedics
  Miami Orthopedics and Sports Medicine Institute at Baptist Hospital of Miami
  • National rank: Not ranked
  • Overall score: 41/100
  • Conditions/procedures applicable to orthopedics:
    • Hip replacement: 5/5 (high performing)
    • Knee replacement: 5/5 (high performing)
• Pulmonology
  • National rank: High performing
  • Overall score: 62.3/100
  • Conditions/procedures applicable to pulmonology:
    • Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: 5/5 (high performing)

Patient Experience At Baptist Hospital Of Miami

Scores are based on surveys taken from Baptist Hospital’s inpatients inquiring about the different aspects of their stay after they were discharged:

• Satisfaction with the hospital overall: 4/5
• Willingness to recommend: 4/5
• Satisfaction with doctors’ communications: 4/5
• Satisfaction with nurses’ communications: 4/5
• Satisfaction with efforts to prevent medication harm: 3/5
• Satisfaction with quality of discharge information: 3/5
• Satisfaction with involvement in recovery: 4/5
• Satisfaction with staff responsiveness: 2/5
• Satisfaction with hospital room cleanliness: 3/5
• Satisfaction with noise volume: 3/5

The hospital fared average for inpatient surveys. It garnered a score of 3 out of 5 overall.

Leapfrog General Safety Rating

The latest Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade of Baptist Hospital of Miami is C for fall of 2020. There has been a steady decline in the hospital’s ratings as it used to enjoy an A grade rating, and then a B grade rating, not so long ago.

The Leapfrog Group rates Baptist Hospital of Miami in the categories below.

Infections

• MRSA infection: Staph bacteria are common in hospitals, but MRSA is a type of staph that cannot be killed by many antibiotics. It is found in bed linens and medical equipment and can be spread if health care providers do not properly wash hands between patients.
  • Baptist Hospital of Miami score: 1.453
  • Best hospital score: 0.000
  • Average hospital score: 0.791
  • Worst hospital score: 2.863

  Baptist Hospital performed below average in this category.

• C. diff infection: C. diff is a bacterium that causes diarrhea, loss of appetite, fever and abdominal pain. C. diff occurs in patients who are taking antibiotics or have recently taken them. Like MRSA, C. diff is spread through contaminated equipment or health care providers not washing hands properly between patients.
  • Baptist Hospital of Miami score: 0.735
  • Best hospital score: 0.000
  • Average hospital score: 0.583
  • Worst hospital score: 1.737

  Baptist Hospital performed worse than average in this category.

Problems With Surgery

• Dangerous objects left in patients’ bodies: This problem does not occur often, but when it does, it can be extremely dangerous. Most of the time, the object left in the patient’s body is a surgical sponge.
  • Baptist Hospital of Miami score: 0.082
  • Best hospital score: 0.000
  • Average hospital score: 0.017
  • Worst hospital score: 0.254

  Baptist Hospital fared below average in this category.

• Surgical wounds split open: A surgical wound splitting open is very painful and places a patient at risk of infection.
  • Baptist Hospital of Miami score: 0.95
  • Best hospital score: 0.67
  • Average hospital score: 0.91
  • Worst hospital score: 1.20

  Baptist Hospital performed worse than average.

Practices To Prevent Errors

• Doctor’s-order medication through a computer: Hospitals use computerized physicians order entry (CPOE) systems to order medications for patients in the hospital instead of writing prescriptions by hand. CPOE systems help reduce medication errors in hospitals.
  • Baptist Hospital of Miami score: 100
  • Best hospital score: 100
  • Average hospital score: 83.56
  • Worst hospital score: 5

  Baptist Hospital performed best in the category, with no errors reported.

• Safe medication administration: Using bar codes on medications, nurses scan the medications and then the patient’s wrist bracelet to make sure that the patient is receiving the right medications. Bar code medication administration (BCMA) reduces the risk of a nurse accidentally giving the wrong medication to a patient.
  • Baptist Hospital of Miami score: 75
  • Best hospital score: 100
  • Average hospital score: 83.44
  • Worst hospital score: 5

  Baptist Hospital of Miami performed below average in this category.

Safety Problems

• Dangerous bed sores: Bed sores are wounds on the skin that form when a patient lays or sits in one position for too long without being moved. They can cause severe pain and serious infections.
  • Baptist Hospital of Miami score: 1.22
  • Best hospital score: 0.03
  • Average hospital score: 0.58
  • Worst hospital score: 2.78

  Baptist Hospital performed below average in this category.

• Patient falls and injuries: Falls can occur when patients who really can’t walk try to get out of bed. Falls can result in longer spells in the hospital and can also result in permanent disability.
  • Baptist Hospital of Miami score: 0.577
  • Best hospital score: 0.000
  • Average hospital score: 0.432
  • Worst hospital score: 1.716

  Baptist Hospital performed below average in this category.

Doctors, Nurses And Hospital Staff

• Effective leadership to prevent errors: Errors become much more common when hospital leaders do not make patient safety a priority. Leaders must make sure money is properly allotted toward enhancing safety measures.
  • Baptist Hospital of Miami score: 120
  • Best hospital score: 120
  • Average hospital score: 117.31
  • Worst hospital score: 9.23

  Baptist Hospital performed best in this category.

• Enough qualified nurses: Patients receive most of their care from nurses, not doctors. If there is a shortage of qualified nurses, then patients might face more complications and longer stays in the hospital.
  • Baptist Hospital of Miami score: 100
  • Best hospital score: 100
  • Average hospital score: 98.37
  • Worst hospital score: 17.65

  Baptist Hospital performed best in this category.

The Baptist Hospital of Miami has not fared well in Leapfrog’s rankings. Although it has performed slightly below average in most safety rankings, for a hospital of the stature of Baptist Hospital, these ratings should be a cause for concern.

Healthgrades

The Baptist Hospital of Miami has not won any awards from Healthgrades in the past few years.

Safety Ratings

Six ratings were worse than expected:

• Pressure sores or bed sores acquired in the hospital
• Catheter-related bloodstream infections in the hospital
• Hip fractures following surgery
• Respiratory failure following surgery
• Deep blood clots in the lungs or legs following surgery
• Accidental cuts, punctures, perforations or hemorrhages during medical care

No cases relating to foreign objects left in the body during a surgery or procedure were reported at the hospital.

Patient Experience

• 72% patients gave a rating of 9 or 10 (3% higher than national average).
• 76% said they would definitely recommend (6% lower than the national average).

The Baptist Hospital of Miami used to be one of the most reputable and respected hospitals in Florida, but recently it has experienced a fall in its ratings. Despite the declining ratings, it remains one of the most prominent hospitals in South Florida.

Reach Out To Us

If you believe that inadequate care or negligence on the part of the medical staff at Baptist Hospital of Miami has negatively affected you or your loved one, then it is important to speak to an experienced medical malpractice attorney. For more information on your legal options, contact us at Kaire & Heffernan, today by calling (305) 876-6001 or reaching out online.