Examples of SMMC Quality Initiatives
SMMC and SMMC Physician Services have implemented many quality assurance programs based on endorsements or recommendations of organizations whose mission is to promote safe, quality patient care.
Examples include:
- SMMC’s implementation of two IHI-supported initiatives: a central line quality checklist to prevent central line infections and implementation of Transforming Care at The Bedside, a framework for care on the medical/surgical units.
- SMMC has also adopted a standard of care known to prevent ventilator-associated pneumonias as recommended by the CDC.
- SMMC PrimeCare Physician Services participates in the Maine Patient-Centered Medical Home Pilot, a three-year initiative using a comprehensive approach to assess changes in clinical quality, patient experience and healthcare cost.
- Ongoing professional practice evaluations of providers that include quality assusrance and improvement activities.
- Patients surveyed regarding their experiences in all SMMC healthcare settings: hospital, outpatient, and physician services.
SMMC Physician Services monitors for and reports on their implementation of a colorectal screening for the prevention of colon cancer; an initiative derived from NCQA and endorsed by NQF and the lOM, among others.
Coupled with the focus on quality of core is our effort to measure the satisfaction and experience of those who are the recipients of our care. SMMC surveys it patients both through a contracted vendor and through a standardized survey facilitated by the Center’s for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS). In an effort to survey recipients of hospital care in a standardized format, CMS began the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPs) initiative that measures patient satisfaction for all consumers’ of hospital care.
These quality initiatives among many others are the infrastructure that supports the care delivered to the valued customers of SMMC.
For more information on these organizations, their efforts and our outcomes, please reference the following links:
