The Denver Hospice Earns Recognition in NHPCO’s Quality Connections Program
The National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) recently named the member organizations who recently earned rings in the inaugural year of its Quality Connections program.
Launched by NHPCO in January of 2021, Quality Connections (QC) is designed to enhance the knowledge base, skills, and competency of hospice and palliative care professionals and providers for continuous quality improvement. QC is structured around four fundamental pillars which are represented by four quality rings: Education, Application, Measurement, and Innovation.
Hospice providers who actively engage in quality improvement raise the bar for performance which leads to service excellence.
“To simply say that a hospice organization is interested in quality is not enough. A hospice must demonstrate its commitment to patient- and family-centered care with measurable results and outcomes. One of the most effective ways to do this is through active participation in NHPCO’s Quality Connections,” said NHPCO President and CEO Edo Banach. “As we share the results from the first year of Quality Connections, we are able to shine a light on hospice organizations that have made significant strides in improving their quality of care. This matters to patients, families, payers, and providers, and I congratulate the providers that participated.”
Of the 244 hospice organizations that embarked on a continuous quality improvement journey in 2021, only 117 programs around the country earned rings reflecting their success in Quality Connections. In Colorado, four programs earned quality rings. The Denver Hospice, Sangre de Cristo Hospice and Abode earned two rings and Pathways earned one ring.
“The Denver Hospice continues to be committed to our community and to improve quality care for every patient and family we have the privilege to care for. Engaging in the quality connections program, even during a pandemic, reflects the commitment of our amazing team for excellence and ongoing process improvement” said Melinda Egging, President of The Denver Hospice.
Additional information about Quality Circles is available at NHPCO at https://www.nhpco.org/nhpco-celebrates-hospice-providers-successfully-earning-quality-connections-rings-in-2021/