About the Center
In hospitals across the country, healthcare professionals continuously monitor their patients’ ever-changing conditions to provide the safest, most effective care. Similarly, in today’s rapidly changing health care environment, clinicians and administrators also need to stay abreast of the latest research findings, changing practices, standards of care, regulations, and technologies. The challenge is immense.
To help the healthcare community meet this challenge, the Center for Safety and Clinical Excellence was founded in 2002 to serve as a resource to help foster the development and dissemination of best practices, critical insights and innovations nationwide. The Center works with nationally and internationally recognized thought leaders to create conferences, educational programs, working groups, publications, web-based programming and industry initiatives that can help clinicians and administrators continuously improve the safety, quality of care, and financial performance of their institutions.
The Center serves as a focal point for iterative cycles of:
- – Transforming data into information into knowledge;
- – Using that knowledge to generate new data, new information, and new knowledge;
- – Disseminating data, information and knowledge nationwide.
Current Center activities include:
- Invited Conferences – Partnering with leading hospitals, organizations and leading experts such as David W. Bates, MD, Kenneth Barker, PhD, and Michael R. Cohen, RPh, ScD, the Center hosts a continuing series of invited conferences. Distinguished faculties are brought together from clinical practice, academia, organizations and government to focus on current issues and opportunities in healthcare. Evidence–based presentations and vigorous roundtable discussions allow participants to share data, experience and lessons learned. The publication of Conference Proceedings as journal supplements and/or internet postings then make these discussions available to a wider audience. Topics have included Measuring Medication Safety, Barcode Medication Administration, Drug Dispensing and Administration, Addressing Harm With High-Risk Drug Administration, and Pain Management and Sedation.
- Symposia – The Center also supports symposia and other learning opportunities such as the recent session on Preventing Medication Errors—The IOM Report, held at the 2006 American Society of Health–System Pharmacists Midyear Meeting. The session was moderated and opened by Michael R. Cohen, RPh, ScD, and David W. Bates, MD, respectively–both members of the Committee that authored the IOM Report.
- Regional Education Programs – Research presentations and hospital case studies outlining priorities and strategies for effectively implementing safe medication management systems and using data for continuous clinical improvement. Regional programs are co-hosted with leading academic medical centers and are offered for continuing medical, pharmacy and nursing education credits. Host hospitals have included Brigham and Women’s, St. Jude’s Medical Center and Main Line Health.
- Webcasts – Live, computer-based presentations delivered via internet and phone have become a quick and effective method for delivering educational content to a national audience. One–hour programs feature clinical experts discussing topics ranging from community-acquired pneumonia to The Joint Commission patient safety initiatives to forecasting pharmacy budgets. The Center hosts approximately one webcast per month; programs are recorded and archived for viewing at a later date. Programs are also accredited for nursing, pharmacy and physician continuing education. Topics have included Lessons Learned: The Aftermath of the Heparin Event at Methodist Hospital; Changing Practices: Pharmacy–Led Anemia and Blood Management; The IOM Report – Preventing Medication Errors, and Improving Patient Safety: An Interdisciplinary Approach to Reducing Medication Errors.
- National Speakers’ Bureau – The Center’s speakers’ bureau allows others to also access its extensive network of recognized experts for national, regional and local conferences and educational programs.
- Publications – Center experts have assisted with the preparation of journal articles such as Variability in Intravenous Medication Practices: Implications for Medication Safety, hospital newsletters, and toolkits such as Safe Administration of High–Risk IV Medications: Intra– and Inter–Hospital Standardization of Drug Concentrations and Dosing Units, created by the San Diego Patient Safety Consortium.
- Industry Initiatives – The Center works with industry associations, advocacy groups, and organizations such as the Leapfrog Group, Institute of Medicine, Institute for Healthcare Improvement, National Patient Safety Foundation, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services to comment on proposed requirements, regulations, legislation and new standards of care.
