Pediatric patients treated at St. Petersburg, Fla.-based Johns Hopkins All Children's Heart Institute died at a "stunning rate" in 2017, according to an investigative report from the Tampa Bay Times.
For the report, Times reporters analyzed 10 years' worth of data on Florida's 10 pediatric heart surgery programs using a state database containing information on 27 million hospital admissions. Reporters also reviewed medical reports and interviewed current and former hospital employees, families of patients, and healthcare safety experts.
Here are three report findings to know:
1. Nearly 1 in 10 All Children's patients died last year, according to the Times. During an 18-month span, 11 patients died after undergoing procedures led by the program's two top heart surgeons. The hospital's mortality rate also tripled in 2015, representing the highest of all pediatric heart programs in Florida.
2. The report also details numerous surgical errors, including needles lost in two infants' chests, and alleges hospital administrators disregarded staff members' safety concerns about the program as far back as 2015.
3. The Times shared its findings with All Children's earlier this month. Hospital officials declined requests for interviews but did not dispute the investigative report. Officials told the Times the hospital stopped all pediatric heart surgeries in October and is in the process of reviewing the program.
"Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital is defined by our commitment to patient safety and providing the highest quality care possible to the children and families we serve," the hospital said in a statement to the Times. "An important part of that commitment is a willingness to learn."
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