DCMH observes National Health Care Quality Week

Quality care is an expectation we all have when we enter a healthcare facility. Oct. 14-20 is National Health Care Quality Week. Delta County Memorial Hospital's quality department actively strives to assist the hospital in providing high quality health care.

The goal of the healthcare quality and patient safety professional is to improve patient care outcomes and healthcare delivery.

Achieving "quality" in health care is more than the ongoing analysis of the delivery of care—it is creating a culture that strives to continuously provide safe and effective care to our community. At Delta County Memorial Hospital we are constantly trying to improve. One example is our overall hospital infection rate of 0.28% which is far below the national average of 5% for rural hospitals (2011).

Measuring and reporting health care quality is extremely important; it gives consumers and employers the ability to make informed choices and pursue the best available care. A health care quality assessment includes keeping consumers informed but it also is about giving feedback to caregivers so that they can address quality issues and improve over time. Many different approaches are used to assess health care quality. Patients are given satisfaction surveys, clinical performance measures are tracked and trended, and health plans are utilized to standardize care for increased safety.

In addition, the hospital undergoes rigorous assessment through accreditation surveys. We have recently completed our state survey for our trauma department and are considered the model level four trauma hospital for the state of Colorado. Our lab was surveyed by the Joint Commission and given continued accreditation, while home health and the hospital expect a Joint Commission onsite team at any time for their impending accreditation survey. A healthcare organization chooses to be accredited in an effort to continuously improve health care for the public through ongoing evaluation and improvement processes. Delta County Memorial Hospital staff excels in providing safe and effective care of the highest quality and value.

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