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Connecticut
Success
Stories: CONNECTICUT
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Qualidigm, the QIO for Connecticut , serves as one of two Patient
Safety Organizations (PSOs) established through state legislation (Public
Act 04-164). Hospitals and ambulatory surgery facilities contract with
one of the PSOs to avail themselves of services that will enhance their
existing patient safety programs. The Qualidigm PSO is designed to
be collaborative and educational; its focus is on providing tools such
as eNewsletters, online learning sessions, and conference calls to
assist facilities in continuously improving their patient safety initiatives.
- Qualidigm,
Connecticut ’s Quality Improvement Organization,
increased mammography screening among African American female Medicare
beneficiaries ages 50 to 67. Qualidigm’s efforts resulted in
an increase of 5.4% in mammography screening in this population and
a reduction the disparity between this group and white non-dually
eligible women in Fairfield county by 2.2%. The QIO intervention
model had three components: education; provision of screening services
through a mobile mammography van; and community outreach through
trusted entities such as churches and The Witness Project, an African
American outreach program. Qualidigm was instrumental in bringing
The Witness Project program to Connecticut ten years ago. In addition,
with a grant from the national Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation,
Qualidigm assessed barriers to mammography for women with disabilities.
The QIO conducted focus groups of women who are visually impaired,
cognitively limited, physically impaired, and deaf or hard of hearing
to develop best practices that overcome barriers to mammography.
- Branford
Hills Healthcare Center greatly reduces use of physical restraints
for nursing home residents: Working intensively with
Qualidigm, Connecticut’s QIO, Branford Hills Healthcare Center
reduced use of physical restraints by 50% over a period of five months
in 2002-2003. The team also worked successfully to stop any new implementation
of physical restraints.
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