CEO Champion Doug Luckett Receives Award for Putting Patient Safety and
Quality First
CaroMont Health CEO Doug Luckett was honored by the North Carolina Hospital
Association (NCHA) for outstanding commitment to quality improvement and
patient safety as part of a three-year national Patient Protection Initiative
sponsored by the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Hospitals and hospital systems participated in the program through 27 different
Hospital Engagement Networks (HENs) across the country focused on reducing
patient harm and eliminating unnecessary hospital readmissions. This national
effort, which concluded in December 2014, resulted in improved care outcomes
for patients and overall savings in health care spending. In its preliminary
report, the HHS Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality estimated that
the Partnership for Patients initiative had saved between $3 and 4 billion
in patient harm and readmissions, and that more than 15,500 deaths were averted.
“Above all, our patients are our number one priority demonstrated
by our continued commitment to quality improvement and patient safety,”
said Doug Luckett, President and CEO at CaroMont Health. “Our Patient
Safety Team serves an integral role in ensuring continuous improvement
projects are identified and executed to assure quality health care and
performance is consistently delivered across the health care system.”
CaroMont Health implemented several quality and safety initiatives resulting
in improved outcomes for patients over the three-year span. Examples of
internal projects include enhanced collaboration between Infection Prevention
and Organizational Effectiveness departments in order to create more standardized
processes, as well as the implementation of nursing education across the
organization. Additionally, CaroMont continues to seek opportunities to
strengthen its partnerships with community networks to glean best practices
and cutting-edge techniques in order to reduce infections and harm events.
NCHA President Bill Pully presented awards recognizing four CEO Champions
during the association’s annual Winter Meeting in February. CEOs
were selected through nominations from each of the four HENs operating
in North Carolina: Carolinas Health System, Premier, Lifepoint, and the
joint HEN between North Carolina and Virginia, NocVA. CaroMont Health
was part of the Premier HEN.
“What we learned through the HENs, as we have seen time and time
again, is that implementing quality improvement programs takes dedication
and that success depends on having a sincerely engaged leader who champions
the work by providing resource support and clear expectations of staff,”
said Pulley.
The Centers for Medicare and Medical Services recently announced the launch
of a second round of Hospital Engagement Network contracts to continue
the work of reducing preventable hospital-acquired conditions and readmissions.
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Photo cutline:
CaroMont Health CEO Doug Luckett (center) was honored recently by the
North Carolina Hospital Association (NCHA) as a champion for healthcare
quality and patient safety. NCHA President Bill Pully and outgoing NCHA
Board Chair Bill Paugh presented the award.