| June 30, 2011 | For More Information Contact: Andy Van Pelt 503-479-6018 |
Oregon Hospitals Join Efforts to Improve Quality of Health Care
The Oregon Association of Hospitals and Health Systems (OAHHS) is pleased to announce its selection and participation in Aligning Forces for Quality Transforming Care at the Bedside (AF4Q TCAB). Bringing together 13 hospital teams from across the state to lead improvements in the quality and safety of patient care, it is a part of an innovative nationwide program led by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the nation’s largest philanthropy dedicated to improving the health and health care of all Americans.
Oregon AF4Q TCAB hospital teams are from:
- Harney District Hospital, Burns
- Lake District Hospital, Lakeview
- Mercy Medical Center, Roseburg
- Mid Columbia Medical Center, The Dalles
- Providence St. Vincent Medical Center (5 teams), Portland
- Rogue Valley Medical Center (2 teams), Medford
- Sky Lakes Medical Center, Klamath Falls
- Tillamook Hospital, Tillamook
AF4Q TCAB is a nurse-led hospital improvement program that engages frontline staff to become proficient in using The Improvement Cycle: Plan, Do, Study, Act on their patient care units over an 18-month period. The program also aims to increase the vitality and retention of nurses and frontline staff, engage and improve the patient’s experience of care, and improve the effectiveness of the entire care team. Participating nurses will then share their successes and lessons learned with other hospitals across the country.
“As Oregon and the nation look at improving care, it is important that we provide local models of reform that provide value for everyone,” said Diane Waldo, director of quality and clinical services. “The Oregon Association of Hospitals and Health System’s leadership of this program shows that we are committed to improving patient care and increasing efficiency to provide consistent outcomes.”
It’s all part of Aligning Forces for Quality, the Foundation’s signature effort to lift the overall quality of health care in targeted communities, as well as reduce racial and ethnic disparities and provide models for national reform. Since 2007, the state of Oregon has been targeted by RWJF with resources to improve health care. The Oregon Health Care Quality Corporation, a Portland-based nonprofit organization, was selected by RWJF to lead the local AF4Q alliance and coordinate activities to improve the quality and affordability of health care in Oregon. In all, 16 regions of the country have been designated as part of Aligning Forces. In each region, a range of efforts to help doctors, nurses and hospitals improve quality – as well as engage consumers to be better patients – is being tested.
“Since 2007, Aligning Forces for Quality has provided important resources to improve the quality of health care in Oregon,” said Mylia Christensen, executive director of the Oregon Health Care Quality Corporation. “Transforming Care at the Bedside is an innovative program that will engage nurses and other frontline staff – the people who work closest with patients – in improving the quality of hospital care for Oregonians.”
The AF4Q TCAB program in Oregon is being convened and facilitated by the Oregon Association of Hospitals and Health Systems. Funded by RWJF, AF4Q and all of the regional TCAB efforts are coordinated by The Center for Health Care Quality at The George Washington University Medical Center School of Public Health and Health Services, which serves as the national program office for the Aligning Forces for Quality initiative.
For more information, go online: http://www.oahhs.org/tcab.
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About OAHHS: Founded in 1934, the Oregon Association of Hospitals and Health Systems (OAHHS) is a statewide, nonprofit trade association that works closely with local and national government leaders, business and citizen coalitions, and other professional health care organizations to enhance and promote community health and to continue improving Oregon's innovative health care industry. OAHHS represents the 58 acute care hospitals in Oregon and three specialty hospitals.
About Oregon Health Care Quality Corporation: Founded in 2000, the Oregon Health Care Quality Corporation is an independent, nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the quality and affordability of health care in Oregon by leading community collaborations and producing unbiased information. We work with the members of our community – including consumers, providers, employers, policymakers and health insurers – to improve the health of all Oregonians.
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