SOUTH MIAMI HOSPITAL REVIEW
Updated May 2021
South Miami Hospital is a 453-bed medical center which was opened in 1960. It provides quality care in many areas including robotic surgery, weight-loss surgery, Cardiovascular services, and burn care.
South Miami Hospital is part of the Baptist Health Care, South Florida. The Hospital’s labor and delivery department has earned the Joint Commission Certification for pre-term labor.
The Hospital has a level II and level III neonatal intensive care unit which is the recipient of the Joint Commission Certification for pre-maturity.
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Overview of South Miami Hospital
Regional Ranking: #19 in Florida and #6 in Miami-Fort Lauderdale.
South Miami Hospital in Florida is rated high-performing in 1 adult specialty and 3 procedures/conditions. It is a teaching hospital.
Rankings and Ratings of South Miami Hospital
- Cancer
- National rank: Not ranked
- Overall score: 42.4/100
- Conditions/procedures applicable to cancer
- Lung Cancer Surgery: 3/5 (Average score)
- Colon Cancer Surgery: 5/5 (High performing)
- Cardiology and Heart Surgery
- National rank: Not ranked
- Overall score: 30.5/100
- Conditions/procedures applicable to cardiology and heart surgery:
- Heart failure: 5/5 (High performing)
- Heart bypass surgery: 3/5 (Average)
- Abdominal, aortic, aneurysm repair: 3/5 (Average score)
- Aortic valve surgery: 3/5 (Average score)
- Orthopedics
- National rank: Not ranked
- Overall score: 47.7/100
- Conditions/procedures applicable to orthopedics
- Hip replacement: 3/5 (Average)
- Knee replacement: 3/5 (Average)
- Pulmonology
- National rank: Not ranked
- Overall score: 48.5/100
- Conditions/procedures applicable to pulmonology
- Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: 5/5 (High performing)
Patient Experience at South Miami Hospital
Scores are based on surveys taken from South Miami 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: 3/5
- Satisfaction with nurses’ communications: 4/5
- Satisfaction with efforts to prevent medication harm: 3/5
- Satisfaction with quality of discharge information: 2/5
- Satisfaction with involvement in recovery: 3/5
- Satisfaction with staff responsiveness: 3/5
- Satisfaction with hospital room cleanliness: 3/5
- Satisfaction with noise volume: 3/5
The hospital fared average on patient surveys. It scored 3 out of 5.
South Miami Hospital continues to be well-respected in South Florida. It has received above average ratings and rankings in most of the categories.
Leapfrog General Safety Rating
The latest Leapfrog Hospital Safety grade for South Miami Hospital is a “B” for fall of 2020.
The Leapfrog group rates South Miami Hospital in the following categories:
Infections
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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 linen or medical equipment and can be spread if healthcare providers do not properly wash hands between patients.
- South Miami Hospital’s score: 1.172
- Best hospital score: 0.000
- Average hospital score: 0.791
- Worst hospital score: 2.863
South Miami Hospital performed worse than average in this category.
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C. Diff Infection
C. Diff is a bacterium that causes diarrhea, loss of appetite, fever, and abdominal pain. C. Diff occurs in patients taking antibiotics or who have recently taken them. Like MRSA, C. Diff is spread through contaminated equipment or healthcare providers not washing hands properly between patients.
- South Miami Hospital’s score: 0.653
- Best hospital score: 0.000
- Average hospital score: 0.583
- Worst hospital score: 1.737
South Miami Hospital performed just below average in this category.
Problems with Surgery
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Dangerous objects left in patients’ bodies
This problem does not occur often, but if it does, it can be extremely dangerous. Most of the times, the object left in patients’ body is a surgical sponge.
- South Miami Hospital’s score: 0.000
- Best hospital score: 0.000
- Average hospital score: 0.017
- Worst hospital score: 0.354
South Miami Hospital did not report any cases of dangerous objects being left behind in Patients’ bodies.
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Surgical wounds split open
A surgical wound splitting open is very painful and places a patient at risk of infection.
- South Miami Hospital’s score: 0.88
- Best hospital score: 0.67
- Average hospital score: 0.91
- Worst hospital score: 1.20
South Miami Hospital performed better than average.
Practices to Prevent Errors
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Doctors’ 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 to reduce medication errors in hospitals.
- South Miami Hospital’s score: 100
- Best hospital score: 100
- Average hospital score: 83.56
- Worst hospital score: 5
South Miami Hospital performed best in the category with no errors reported.
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Safe medication administration
Using barcodes on medications, nurses scan the medications and then the patient’s wrist bracelet to make sure the patient is receiving the right medications. Bar Code Medication Administration (BCMA) reduce the risk of a nurse accidentally giving the wrong medication to a patient.
- South Miami Hospital’s score: 100
- Best hospital score: 100
- Average hospital score: 83.44
- Worst hospital score: 5
South Miami Hospital performed best in this category.
Safety Problems
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Dangerous bedsores
Bedsores 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.
- South Miami Hospital’s score: 1.70
- Best hospital score: 0.03
- Average hospital score: 0.58
- Worst hospital score: 2.78
South Miami Hospital performed much worse than average in this category.
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Patient falls and injuries
Falls can occur when patients who really can’t walk, try getting out of bed. Falls can result in longer spells in the hospital and can also result in permanent disability.
- South Miami Hospital’s score: 0.517
- Best hospital score: 0.000
- Average hospital score: 0.432
- Worst hospital score: 1.716
South Miami Hospital performed below average in this category.
Doctors, Nurses, and Hospital Staff
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Effective leadership to prevent errors
Errors become much common if hospital leaders do not make patient safety a priority. Leaders must make sure money is properly allotted towards enhancing safety measures.
- South Miami Hospital’s score: 120
- Best hospital score: 120
- Average hospital score: 117.31
- Worst hospital score: 9.23
South Miami Hospital performed best in this category.
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Enough qualified nurses
Patients receive most of their care from nurses and not doctors. If there is a shortage of qualified nurses, patients might face more complications, and longer stays in the hospital.
- South Miami Hospital’s score: 100
- Best hospital score: 100
- Average hospital score: 98.37
- Worst hospital score: 17.65
South Miami Hospital performed best in this category.
Leapfrog ratings for South Miami Hospital are a cause of concern. The hospital enjoys a sound reputation in South Florida but its infections and safety ratings are below average and can deter prospective patients from seeking treatment at the hospital.
Healthgrades
Healthgrades has not chosen South Miami Hospital for any awards in the recent past.
Safety Ratings
One rating was better than expected:
- Excessive bruising or bleeding as a consequence of a Procedure or Surgery
Four ratings were worse than expected:
- Catheter-related bloodstream infections acquired at the hospital
- Respiratory failure following surgery
- Deep blood clots in lungs or legs following surgery
- Accidental cut, puncture, perforation, or hemorrhage during medical care
Eight ratings were as expected.
No cases relating to foreign objects left in the body during a surgery or procedure were reported at the hospital.
Patient Experience
- Patient Ratings
- 74% patients gave a rating of 9 or 10. (5% higher than national average)
- 76% said they would definitely recommend. (6% higher than the national average)
- Care Team Ratings
- Communication with Doctors
82% of patients said that doctors always listened to them and explained things well. (1% higher than the national average fo 81%) - Communication with Nurses
79% of patients said that nurses always listened to them and explained things well. (1% higher than the national average of 78%) - Communication about Medicines
62% of patients said that staff members always explained medicines before they were given to them. (1% lower than the national average of 63%) - Discharge Information
83% of patients were given information about recovering at home. (1% lower than the national average of 84%) - Care Transition
57% of the patients said that they understood their care needs when they left the hospital. (4% higher than the national average of 53%) - Responsiveness of Hospital
64% of patients said they always received help quickly from hospital staff. (2% lower than the national average of 66%)
- Communication with Doctors
- Facility Report
- Quietness
61% of patients said that their rooms and the area around it were always quiet at night. (1% higher than national average of 60%) - Cleanliness
77% of patients said that their rooms and bathrooms were always kept clean. (4% higher than the national average of 73%)
- Quietness
Although South Miami Hospital has not received any awards from Healthgrades, it has performed reasonably well on inpatient surveys. The safety ratings continue to haunt South Miami Hospital even in Healthgrades’ findings.
If you believe that inadequate care or negligence on the part of the medical staff at South Miami Hospital has negatively affected you or your loved one, it is important to speak to an experienced medical malpractice attorney. For more information on your legal options, contact our office today.