Riz Hatton recently moderated a panel discussing quality improvement projects that add the most value to hospitals. The panelists included:
- Charleen Tachibana, DNP, RN, Senior Vice President and Chief Quality, Safety and Patient Experience Officer, Virginia Mason Franciscan Health
- Will Carroll, PharmD, Chief Pharmacy Officer, Hackensack Meridian Health; Clinical Assistant Professor, Dept of Neurology, Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine
- Julie L. Wei, MD MMM, Professor, Otolaryngology; Chair, Otolaryngology Education, University of Central Florida College of Medicine
- Michele Szkolnicki, MEd, BSN, RN, FACHE, CMPE, Senior Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer, Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Penn State Health
Identifying Patient Safety Risks and Prioritizing Care Quality Initiatives
We need to prioritize care quality initiatives when we identify a patient safety risk. We can use the Lean Six Sigma process, gather incident reports, and look for high-risk and high-volume problems. It's also important to include our workforce in these conversations and consider all three aspects of patients, people, and responsibility. Additionally, we should be aware of the comments section in Midas, as it can provide insight into safety culture.
The Role of Chief Pharmacy Officer in Quality Improvement Projects
The role of a Chief Pharmacy Officer in quality improvement projects is to ensure that all team members are providing the right dose of the right medication to the right patient at the right time. They can also look at different settings like inpatient and outpatient and see how they can get compliance with social issues like affordability or access to care. They can also work on value-based initiatives, such as monitoring percentage compliance with mammograms, colonoscopies, and hemoglobin A1C. Finally, they can provide training and teaching opportunities for students in the hospital setting.
Advocating for More Regulation and Collaborative Practice Agreements
Pharmacists can play a big role in the healthcare system, from the four walls of the pharmacy to population health and social determinants of health. They are also advocating for more regulation to advance the role of pharmacists in the healthcare system. Michelle is looking to develop collaborative practice agreements to help fill the gap in healthcare. Julie is prioritizing medication reconciliation as a quality improvement initiative and is looking to leverage technology to improve patient access.
Improving Healthcare Efficiency and Reducing Low-Value Added Tasks
The speaker is talking about how to improve healthcare efficiency and reduce the burden of low value added tasks. They are currently focusing on a pharmacy-led med history acquisition process, and they are looking at ways to create something more robust internally to support 18 hospitals. They are also looking at collaborations with quality care management and case management in order to ensure consistent patient experience across their network.
Key Takeaways
The takeaway from this panel discussion is that frontline staff are the best source for identifying issues and utilizing incident reports to recognize areas that need improvement. Psychological safety needs to be emphasized, and communication and collaboration among healthcare professionals is key. Additionally, it is important to not spend too much time analyzing and planning, but rather take action and be creative while piloting initiatives in order to find the best solutions.
Note: This is an AI generated transcript, not edited by a staff writer and is solely intended for educational purposes. If you have any questions/concerns, reach out to events@beckershealthcare.com
This panel was live on 04/05/2023 at the event listed here.
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