2011 FINE AWARDS FOR TEAMWORK EXCELLENCE IN HEALTH CARE
Five local teams were recipients of the 2011 Fine Awards for Teamwork Excellence in Health Care during a reception at the August Wilson Center for African American Culture on Thursday, November 17. Sponsored by The Fine Foundation and the Jewish Healthcare Foundation (JHF), the Fine Awards were established to reinforce the critical role teamwork plays in health care. For the first time, the awards included teams from Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC) and teams who have been able to sustain improvement for at least three years.
“Healthcare teams across Western Pennsylvania have made a commitment to excellence. They are leading by example as they develop safe, efficient, and patient-centered approaches to solving problems,” said Milton Fine, president and chairman of The Fine Foundation. “An important part of this process is the ability to sustain improvement, and to translate success in one area to system-wide improvement.”
A distinguished regional and national selection committee was commissioned to review the applications and select the winners. However, the outstanding quality of submissions resulted in the selection of a fifth winner.
“An impressive and diverse collection of applications was submitted this year, making the selection process highly competitive,” said Karen Wolk Feinstein, president and CEO of JHF. “We were surprised to find that two organizations tied for the Gold Award for Sustained Excellence.”
The Platinum Award went to a team from VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System for “Zeroing In on CHF Readmissions.” The Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) team was formed to meet the challenges specific to caring for this complex patient population. The team developed a booklet and tracking system for providing focused patient education and standardized discharge and follow-up instructions. The CHF team reduced the length of stay for initial admissions, and reduced the readmissions percentage to well below the national average. Gold Awards for Sustained Excellence were awarded to the following two teams: St. Clair Hospital for Sustaining Excellence in Patient Flow in the Emergency Department and UPMC St. Margaret for Sustain the Gain: COPD Readmission Reduction. The Silver Award went to a team from UPMC Shadyside Family Health Center & Shadyside Hospital 3 East for Creating a Bridge Between Inpatient and Outpatient Care. The Bronze Award went to a team from North Side Christian Health Center for Achieving NCQA Recognition as a Patient-Centered Medical Home.
“The Fine Awards provide a wonderful opportunity to highlight successful models of healthcare change,” said Feinstein. “The 2011 winners, and those from past years, are making quality improvement a priority and they are seeing positive results for patients, reductions in costs, and improved employee satisfaction.”
Platinum Award Winner
Click to watch video.
Gold Award Winner
Click to watch video.
Gold Award Winner
Click to watch video.
Silver Award Winner
Click to watch video.
Bronze Award Winner
Click to watch video.