BWH Wins National Quality Award

Brigham and Women’s Hospital shined this month in Washington, D.C., with hospital President Gary Gottlieb accepting the 2006 National Quality Health Care Award during a dinner ceremony attended by national health care leaders.

“This award is a testament to the hard work of our teams at BWH who have created an environment that promotes a standard of excellence in health care. It is truly an honor and a privilege to work with the men and women who are the cornerstone of our commitment to quality and safety,” Gottlieb said.

BWH is just the 13th hospital?—?and first in New England?—?to receive this annual award from the National Committee for Quality Healthcare (NCQHC), a nonprofit organization comprised of industry leaders who share a common interest in quality as the foundation of health care delivery. Each year since 1994, the NCQHC has assembled a panel of independent jurors from a broad spectrum of academia, health care, consumer groups, public agencies and others.

The NCQHC and the judging panel examined hospital performance across eight dimensions of quality: leadership commitment; strategic planning; patient-centered practices; innovative informatics and application of new technologies; building a committed workforce; evidence-based performance measurement and improvement systems; strong financial management; and community health needs.

Specifically, the NCQHC looks for excellence in all eight categories, and in BWH, that’s exactly what the judging panel found, said its chairman, Kenneth Samet, president and COO of MedStar Health. “We were impressed with all of the applicants. The field is clearly making real progress in developing higher quality, safer, patient care environments. However, BWH demonstrated an innovative approach to cultural transformation using new and emerging technologies and bringing staff into the decision-making process. Throughout the application, BWH demonstrated a strong commitment to quality.”

At the award celebration dinner March 8, Gottlieb thanked Partners HealthCare President and CEO James Mongan and BWH Board of Directors Chairman Marshall Moriarty, who joined him in Washington, D.C., for their enduring commitment to excellence.

“BWH is grateful to Partners and Jim Mongan for his leadership through the Partners Signature initiatives that focus on quality and safety,” Gottlieb said. “Also, a special thanks go to Marshall Moriarty and our board for their support and intimate involvement in our mission to deliver the very best health care to all.”

U.S. Sen. Edward M. Kennedy attended the March 8 dinner and praised BWH for its commitment to quality. “Every revolution starts with leadership and courage,” Kennedy said. “Our American revolution began in Boston, and the quality revolution in American medicine began right here at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.”

The Cardinal Health Foundation, which is supported by Cardinal Health Inc., sponsors the NCQHC National Quality Health Care Award with Modern Healthcare magazine.