“The award-winning projects offer a snapshot of what Illinois hospitals are doing when they think bold to take up best practices, deploy evidence-based practices and test unique approaches to drive healthcare innovation,” said Jay Bhatt, DO, chief health officer of IHA.
Winners were selected from nearly 100 applications by a panel of quality improvement experts. The winners, by category, are as follows:
Healthcare System category
- Chicago-based Sinai Health System won the award for a program that reduced asthma-related emergency department visits by 66 percent and hospitalizations by 57 percent in one year.
Rural/Critical Access Hospital category
- Highland-based HSHS St. Joseph’s Hospital, Highland, won for its program, “Patient-Centered Approach to Reducing Readmissions.” The hospital has reduced readmission rates by 20 percent in two years.
Urban Hospital category
- Elgin-based Presence Saint Joseph Hospital received the award for reducing its venous thromboembolism rates by 87 percent through new care guidelines and an early mobility program.
- HSHS St. Elizabeth’s Hospital, Belleville, won for decreasing blood usage by 30 percent by building new guidelines into the hospital’s EHR.
Tim Philipp Award for Excellence in Palliative Care
- AMITA Health in Arlington Heights increased consultations for palliative care by more than 20 percent in one year.
More articles on quality improvement:
Doing more with less: Strategies for competing on price, quality and both at the same time
Beyond the burning platform: A recipe for continuous quality improvement
What’s really behind lower hospital readmission rates: Quality improvement or cheating?
