PITTSBURGH, Nov. 8, 2017 – The Joint Commission recently selected UPMC as one of 11 hospitals and health systems recognized as 2017 Pioneers in Quality™ Solution Contributors. This group submitted proven practices and solutions that demonstrate the use of electronic clinical quality measures (eCQMs) and health IT for quality improvement.

 

As noted in the newly released America’s Hospitals: Improving Quality and Safety – The Joint Commission’s Annual Report 2017, more than a dozen UPMC hospitals also were recognized as 2017 Pioneers in Quality™ Data Contributors for their voluntary efforts in submitting eCQMs. Of more than 3,200 Joint Commission-accredited hospitals that reported 2016 data, only 470 have been named 2017 Pioneers in Quality™ organizations. This program started last year and included UPMC in that small initial group of recognized early adopters.

 

Until recently, most hospitals collected information to measure health care quality by manually extracting data from patient records. Today, through eCQMs—which rely on structured, encoded data present in the electronic health record—hospitals can electronically collect and transmit data on the

quality of care that patients receive. The electronic data can be analyzed to measure and improve care processes, performance and outcomes.

 

“This recognition by The Joint Commission reflects on our staff’s commitment to continuous quality improvement and measurement. Like The Joint Commission, we believe gathering and analyzing performance data is crucial to continuously improving quality of care and outcomes for all patients,” said Tami Minnier, chief quality officer of UPMC.

 

The UPMC hospitals selected as 2017 Pioneers in Quality™ Data Contributors were UPMC Presbyterian Shadyside, UPMC Altoona, UPMC Bedford, UPMC East, UPMC Hamot, UPMC Horizon, Magee-Womens Hospital of UPMC, UPMC McKeesport, UPMC Mercy, UPMC Northwest, UPMC Passavant, UPMC St. Margaret and UPMC Chautauqua WCA. 

 

For more information about The Joint Commission and the Pioneers in Quality™ program, visit www.jointcommission.org.