Children's Hospital Colorado Named Winner of Top Quality and Safety Prize

Children’s Hospital Colorado has been named the winner of the 2015 American Hospital Association-McKesson Quest for Quality Prize. The prize is presented annually to raise awareness of the need for a hospital-wide commitment to highly reliable, safe, patient-centered care of exceptional quality, and to reward successful efforts to develop and promote a systems-based approach toward improvements in quality of care. The award is supported by a grant from the McKesson Corporation.

Why did we win the AHA-McKesson Question for Quality?

Children’s Colorado received the AHA-McKesson Quest for Quality Prize for its sustainable and pervasive approach to achieving the Institute of Medicine’s six quality aims: safe, effective, efficient, timely, patient/family-centered and equitable health care. The award committee specifically recognized the Children’s Colorado board of directors’ exceptional support, the strong partnership between physician faculty, staff and administration, and the engagement of patients and families in the hospital’s continuous efforts to improve patient care. In addition, the committee praised the innovative use of data and technology and the hospital’s outreach and engagement of its local community.

 ​“At Children’s Colorado, our culture of safety encourages every member of the healthcare team –including physicians, staff, patients and family members – to  stop and resolve safety concerns and to question when something doesn’t seem right,” said Daniel Hyman, MD, MMM, chief quality and patient safety officer at Children’s Colorado.  “Full-scale partnerships between our board, community, leadership team, medical school and faculty, patients and families, and frontline staff are key in our quest to continuously improve the care we provide.”

“The team at Children’s Colorado is honored and proud to receive the Quest for Quality Prize. This award is a reflection of the dedication and commitment of our entire staff, the passionate involvement of our parents who are champions of patient safety, and of the investment from our community that supports our quest to provide the absolute best care for our patients,” said Jena Hausmann, president and chief executive officer at Children’s Colorado.

We're one of only two pediatric hospitals to win 

Children’s Colorado is only the second children’s hospital to earn the Quest for Quality Prize in its 14-year history. Duke University Hospital in Durham, N.C., was a finalist, while Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, and Schneck Medical Center in Seymour, Ind., received Citations of Merit. This year’s award winners will be honored on July 23 at the Health Forum-American Hospital Association Leadership Summit in San Francisco.

“Every hospital can take a page from the book these hospitals are writing each and every day on how to provide quality care,” said Rich Umbdenstock, AHA’s president and chief executive officer. “Through impressive engagement of patients, families, their boards and their whole staff, these hospitals are excelling in safe, patient-centered, effective, efficient, timely, and equitable care.”