Presence Saint Francis Hospital Ratings & Violations

Presence Saint Francis Hospital is a 259-bed facility providing medical services to Evanston and Cook County Illinois. The facility is located at:

• 355 Ridge Ave.
• Evanston, IL 60202
• (847) 316-4000

The Magnet-designated hospital is part of Presence Health, which is formally known as Provena Health and Resurrection Health Care.

Illinois State Designations

The Presence Saint Francis Hospital of Evanston, Illinois maintains four specific state designations that include:

Perinatal II+

As a Level II perinatal medical facility with extended capabilities, Presence Saint Francis Hospital offers extended neonatal capabilities to women of childbearing age. This provides a level of intermediate medical care to pregnant women and a high level of complex medical care to newborns, when necessary. However, the hospital does not maintain a neonatal intensive care nursery, but does offer a special care nursery overseen by a specifically trained neonatologist to provide special care to newborns.

Trauma Center I

As a part of the Illinois trauma system, the hospital offers Level I emergency medical services to the community. This means it must maintain a helicopter landing capacity and provide every essential service for emergency medical treatment at the facility 24 hours a day. The medical director at the hospital also serves as the trauma surgeon. In addition, Presence Saint Francis Hospital provides specialty and subspecialty services including surgical care, anesthesiology, emergency medicine, intensive care and radiology.

Emergency Department Approved for Pediatrics (EDAP)

To maintain the EDAP designation, the hospital must provide specialized medical professionals with specific training in pediatric critical and emergency care. In addition, the medical center must adequately staff the facility and provide provisions for pediatric backup support and consultation, and be equipped with pediatric medications, supplies and equipment.

Magnet Recognition

Presence Saint Francis Hospital maintains a Magnet recognition because of their commitment to use professional “best nursing practices” and follow a model of health care emphasizing patient advocacy, patient care coordination and nursing accountability.

Facility-Acquired Infections

Hospitals and medical centers throughout Illinois are required to participate in programs effective at reducing infection rates acquired by patients during their stay. As required by law, all Illinois medical facilities must send facility-acquired infection reports to the National Health Safety Network (NHSN) surveillance system managed by the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention).

The accumulated 2014 data of all infections acquired at Presence Saint Francis Hospital reported between 01/01/2018 at 12/31/2018 that includes:

• Central Line-Associated Bloodstream Infection (CLABSI) Incidents Include:
  • Infection developed in the adult surgical cardiothoracic intensive care unit – 0 infection incident out of 437 central line days.
• CDI and MRSA Bloodstream Infection Incidents Include:
  • CDI (Clostridium difficile infection) onset incident rate – 28 infection incidents of 32,908 patient days.
  • MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus onset incident rate – 0 infection incidents out of 34,801 patient days.

Patient Safety Concerns

The Illinois Department of Public health maintains discharge information reported by hospitals and medical centers as a way to monitor patient safety measures to detect potential problems. Between 10/01/2013 and 09/30/2014, the patient safety concerns at Presence Saint Francis Hospital involved:

• Deep Vein Thrombosis (Blood Clotting) or Postoperative Lung Embolism – 5 incidences out of 1550 patients.
• Accidental Lacerations or Puncture Wounds – 3 incidents out of 6310 patients.
• Abdominal Wall Surgeries with Wound Complications – 1 incident out of 244 patients.
• Postoperative Respiratory Failure – 4 incidents out of 601 patients.
• Postoperative Hematomas and Hemorrhages – 7 incidents out of 1509 patients.
• Unexpected Deaths – 2 unexpected deaths out of 1224 patients, which is statistically significantly worse as compared to the Illinois state average of all other hospitals and medical facilities.

Sample Medical Malpractice Claims Involving Presence St. Francis

$3,000,000 Settlement; Illinois Wrongful Death Case

The patient in this legal dispute was in his early seventies. He worked as a dentist. Prior to these events, the man had a history of cardiac trouble. He suffered a heart attack and had lingering pain from that experience. On this occasion, he entered the emergency room at Presence St. Francis Hospital. The man complained that his chest was bothering him, and it was hurting him in a similar way as it had before his heart attack. The staff on call notified the cardiologist but that doctor did not arrive for over twenty minutes. That delay had devastating effects. The man passed away in the cath laboratory of Presence. His wife and children survived him. All of his kids had reached adult. Together, they brought this case against the hospital. The family alleged that the defendants were negligent in their care of that man. They argued that had he been seen and treated sooner, he could have been saved. The facility filed a reply but its objections, if any, were not weighed by a jury, because they settled before that could happen. The family obtained $3 million in settlement compensation for the tragedy of losing their family member.

$6,000,000 Settlement; Illinois Hospital Malpractice Lawsuit

Here, a young girl suddenly fell ill. She was nineteen years old and a second-year college student. The cause of her fall was a seizure. Emergency responders arrived and took her at once to the ER (Presence St. Francis). Staff took an initial examination and ordered a CT-scan. However, they did not find anything abnormal about the results. It was not until the next day that an intern reread the results and spotted an arterial occlusion. Doctors operated on her immediately. They removed a blood clot. Unfortunately, it was too late. The damage had already been done. She passed away just five days after these initial events. Her sister and parents survived her. They brought this case for failed diagnosis, negligent treatment, and wrongful death. The family plead for damages related to the woman’s pain, death, expenses as well as their grief and lost companionship. The defendants gave the plaintiffs a reported $6 million in a private settlement. Half of that amount came directly from the hospital.

If you, or a loved one, have been harmed after being admitted to Presence St. Francis Hospital, your injuries may be the result of medical errors, mistakes or malpractice. The experienced personal injury attorneys at Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers LLC serve as aggressive advocates for patients all across Illinois. We accept Evanston medical malpractice cases, wrongful death claims and personal injury lawsuits on contingency, meaning you pay no upfront fees or retainers. We encourage you to schedule your free initial consultation by calling our law offices today, so we can discuss your case to receive the financial compensation you deserve.

Sources:

• Presence Saint Francis Hospital