New England hospitals create clinical practice improvement network

A group of nineteen New England hospitals have joined together in a network allowing them to share information about clinical practices and boost their quality improvement efforts. The hospitals are starting by focusing on preventing and reducing the incidence of pressure ulcers. The hospitals will share this information through a "Rapid Adoption Network" sponsored by VHA Inc. The hospitals will be using VHA's clinical blueprint to mount their pressure ulcer reduction efforts.

To support the hospitals' efforts, VHA offers a web-based portal giving them access to practice blueprints and information on other hospitals' performance. It also offers a clinical education series.

While this concept is new to the hospitals, VHA has a track record in developing such networks already. For example, in June twenty-one hospitals across Louisiana, Mississippi and Tennessee created a Rapid Adoption Network to improve clinical quality and patient safety related to heart failure discharge instructions and surgical care. As with the New England network, the goal is to cut improvement time down to less than one year.

To learn more about these efforts:
- read this VHA press release

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