How Safe Are Louisiana Hospitals? New Ratings Reveal Surprising Results

If you get hurt or have a serious illness that requires a hospital visit, you might want to know which hospitals are the best alternatives. Unfortunately, not all hospitals perform equally well when it comes to patient safety. The latest hospital safety grades show that while some Louisiana hospitals are leaders in quality care, others fall behind.

What Is the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade System?

These grades are bases on a wide variety of safety measures including:

Infections: Preventing MRSA, C. diff, sepsis, and surgical site infections.

Surgical Problems: Avoiding serious “never events” such as leaving foreign objects inside a patient or accidental tears during surgery.

Safety Problems: Monitoring preventable injuries like bedsores, blood clots, collapsed lungs, and patient falls.

Error Prevention Practices: Ensuring safe medication distribution, proper handwashing, and effective communication systems.

What Are Louisiana’s Best-Rated Hospitals

The latest numbers from the Leapfrog report are from the spring of 2025.
Several Louisiana hospitals earned “A” grades for patient safety, placing them among the nation’s best.

These are:

Ochsner Medical Center – New Orleans (named the Best Hospital in Louisiana for the 14th year by U.S. News & World Report)

Ochsner Medical Center – Baton Rouge

St. Bernard Parish Hospital

Ochsner LSU Health – Monroe Medical Center

Ochsner St. Mary

Leonard J. Chabert Medical Center (Houma)

What Hospitals Need to Do a Better Job?

Not all hospitals in Louisiana earned high scores. The Leapfrog data shows several hospitals scored “C” or “D” grades. These numbers are the result of higher infection rates, preventable surgical complications, and weak communication between staff and patients.

But the report does not list the worst performing hospitals in the state.