Six Oregon Hospitals to Be Recognized for Quality Improvement

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Tonight, Jon Mitchell, president and CEO of OMPRO, a healthcare quality improvement organization, will present six hospitals with the first annual Oregon Hospital Quality Awards. The presentations will be made at the Oregon Association of Hospitals and Health Systems (OAHHS) annual conference held at Sunriver Resort in Bend, Ore.

The awards, sponsored by OMPRO, OAHHS, and the Office of Rural Health,

recognize performance improvement in one of four clinical areas: acute

myocardial infarction, surgical-site infection prevention, heart failure, or

pneumonia. The awards will be presented to

     -- Silverton Hospital for its work on surgical-site infection prevention

-- Adventist Medical Center for its work on acute myocardial infarction

     -- Legacy Emanuel Hospital & Health Center for its work on acute myocardial

     infarction

     -- Legacy Good Samaritan Hospital & Medical Center for its work on heart

     failure

     -- Legacy Meridian Park Hospital for its work on heart failure

     -- Legacy Mount Hood Medical Center for its work on heart failure

"It's my pleasure to shine a spotlight on the quality improvement work of

these hospitals," said Mitchell. "The hospital leadership and quality

improvement staff should be congratulated for their commitment to quality."

Hospitals were required to provide a description of the performance

improvement actions implemented and demonstrate their success with data

showing improvement.

 "Our hope is that these awards will create a forum for sharing quality

improvement successes statewide," said Mitchell.

OMPRO is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the quality and

effectiveness of healthcare. Since 1984, OMPRO has contracted with Medicare

to support effective, evidence-based healthcare for Medicare patients in

Oregon. Additionally, OMPRO contracts with state agencies and private

organizations to conduct quality assurance and quality improvement healthcare

projects. OMPRO's work spans the continuum of care, reaching all age and

economic levels, and all delivery settings.

To be eligible for the award, the hospital must focus on all of the quality measures in

at least one of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) clinical

topics (acute myocardial infarction, surgical-site infection prevention, heart

failure, or pneumonia).

Hospitals must satisfy one of the two criteria for each measure:

    --  Demonstrate a 10 percentage-point improvement from the baseline

        measurement to the final measurement at the end of the re-measurement

        period.

    --  Achieve and sustain a 90 percent or higher performance rate for three

        consecutive quarters.

    Application Requirements

    --  The hospital must provide a description of the performance improvement

        actions taken, barriers encountered, systems changes, and future

        improvement actions as well as samples of its interventions (e.g.,

        standing orders, care protocols, flow sheets, or physician reminders).

    --  The sample size for each quality measure must be 20 charts per month,

        or 100 percent of the charts if there are fewer than 20 charts for any

        given diagnosis under the clinical topic.

    --  The baseline measurement must include data from discharges in at least

        one quarter of 2002 or 2003.

    --  The re-measurement period may include any three consecutive quarters

        from January 1, 2003, through March 31, 2004.

Source: OMPRO