National Association for Healthcare Quality

Some of you may have a strong interest in improving health care quality. The IHI or Institute for Healthcare Improvement is a great place to find resources and join a community of health care professionals invested in improving quality. The National Association for Healthcare Quality is another group to explore:

The National Association for Healthcare Quality (NAHQ) is a professional association dedicated to the advancement of the profession of healthcare quality and patient safety and the individual professionals working in the field.

Founded in 1976, NAHQ has more than 10,000 quality and patient safety professionals working in healthcare settings both nationally and internationally. These professionals drive the delivery of vital data for effective decision making in healthcare systems by combining technology with their unique expertise in quality management.

The Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality (CPHQ) credential signifies professional and academic achievement by individuals in the field of healthcare quality management.

2013 Student Quality Leadership Academy

The 4th Annual IHI Open School Student Quality Leadership Academy, sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, will be held on June 13-14, 2013 in Cambridge, MA.

The Student Quality Leadership Academy is a free, two-day program for students and residents designed to build the leadership competencies within all health professions.

2013 IHI Open School Student Quality Leadership Academy
June 13-14, 2013
Cambridge, MA

Participants will learn specific skills related to leading change, managing conflict, communicating effectively, and tackling other leadership challenges they currently face, or will face in their careers. A complete list of the program faculty and agenda will be shared within the next few weeks.

Learn more here.

Medical students gaining experience in Quality Improvement (QI)

I find it inspiring that medical students are getting experience in Quality Improvement. QI is not a normal part of the medical school curriculum. You may learn some basics around general QI concepts, but you don't generally get to work on a QI initiative.

Some medical students enrolled in dual-degree MD/MBA programs have worked on a QI project by applying business principles in a health care setting. After all, business principles related to process improvement can be applied in health care.

The IHI (Institute for Healthcare Improvement) Open School project has given today's medical students the resources and framework to work on a QI project. As an example: Colleen McCormick is a fourth-year medical student at Wright State University who will be doing her pediatrics residency at Northwestern University in Chicago, has written weekly posts for the IHI Open School blog. McCormick used the IHI Open School Quality Improvement Practicum to set up and execute her QI project.

If you're a medical student or resident interested in quality improvement, make sure to take get involved with the IHI Open School project.