WARWICK – Two individuals and five organizations were honored today by Quality Partners of Rhode Island during the group’s 5th Annual Celebration of Healthcare Quality in Rhode Island, held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel Providence-Warwick, located in the Crossings development on Route 5 in Warwick.
“This event is a celebration of the advances and improvements in health care quality and patient safety being pioneered in the State of Rhode Island,” H. John Keimig, the quality improvement organization’s president and CEO, said in a statement this morning.
Keynote speaker for the awards breakfast was patient safety expert Stephen Harden, the president of LifeWings Partners LLC, a co-founder of Crew Training International Inc. (CTI) and co-author of “CRM: The Flight Plan for Lasting Change in Patient Safety,” a handbook on how aviation-based safety tools can be used in health care organizations. He has helped more than 80 health care organizations in 26 states to implement safety practices adapted from aviation and other industries.
Honored by Quality Partners this morning with its 2008 Advancing Innovation in Healthcare awards were:
• Lifetime Achievement Award: George A. Vecchione, president and CEO of the nonprofit Lifespan health care system, for his “outstanding accomplishments in patient safety and information technology in healthcare quality improvement.”
• Public Policy & Healthcare Advocacy Award: Marie Ganim, director of policy for the R.I. Senate, for her “contributions to improving the quality, safety and value of health care provided to the citizens of Rhode Island.”
• Consumer Health Award: Thundermist Health Center in Woonsocket.
• Hospital Award: Rhode Island Hospital in Providence, a member of the Lifespan system.
• Home Health Award: VNA of Care New England.
• Nursing Home Award: A tie between the St. Elizabeth Home in East Greenwich, a member of the nonprofit St. Elizabeth Community; and the West Shore Health Center in Warwick, a Health Concepts Ltd. facility.
The annual awards recognize Rhode Island-based organizations and individuals for achievement and innovation in patient safety and quality of care. (READ MORE)
Quality Partners of Rhode Island – the health-care quality improvement organization for Rhode Island, as designated by the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services – is recognized as a national leader in a number of areas, including nursing homes and home health agencies. Additional information is available at www.RIQualityPartners.org.
