Northwest Hospital and Levindale Receive Patient Safety Certification from Maryland Patient Safety Center
Baltimore, MD - Northwest Hospital and Levindale Hebrew Geriatric Center and Hospital have each received Organizational Patient Safety Certification from the Maryland Patient Safety Center (MPSC), two of only three hospitals in Maryland selected for this pilot project
Teams at both facilities completed a comprehensive program focused on training and empowering "patient safety champions" to serve as leaders to enhance a culture of safety throughout their organizations.
"At Northwest Hospital and Levindale, we have a commitment to excellence in everything we do. We put the patient at the center of every decision we make. This certification reaffirms what we have long-known: that we are setting the standard for high-quality and compassionate patient care," says Brian White, president of Northwest Hospital and Post-Acute Services, and senior vice president of LifeBridge Health.
He adds, "I am so proud of our teams who whole-heartedly took on this opportunity and challenged themselves and their colleagues to think differently - confronting long-held beliefs and embracing innovation."
The MPSC developed the program to promote a long-lasting commitment to patient safety initiatives throughout hospitals and other medical centers using data-driven decision making, identifying specific safety issues and developing reliable action plans.
"Our new certification program is an important piece of the continued evolution and progression of our program offerings for health care providers throughout Maryland and beyond," says Robert Imhoff, president & CEO of the Maryland Patient Safety Center.
He adds, "To ensure the success of the pilot project, we were careful to select organizations that share our values and approach to patient safety. We also sought providers who were innovative and are proactive in developing a strong culture of patient safety. We wanted to find partners who would teach us as much as we taught them. We are grateful to the leadership at Northwest Hospital and Levindale for their commitment and successful execution of this pilot certification."
Employees from a wide variety of departments at Northwest Hospital and Levindale were designated as patient safety champions and trained for this two-and-a-half-year-long project. They worked with employees from clinical and non-clinical areas to strategize about how to proactively boost patient safety.
Among the initiatives: assessing possible hazards before a crisis and then coming up with solutions in a timely manner; creating an atmosphere of accountability where employees share honest feedback; encouraging teamwork and better listening; and devising plans to sustain the changes over time.
This is the second time in recent weeks that Northwest Hospital has been honored by the Maryland Patient Safety Center. The hospital was recognized with the organization's 2017 Minogue Award for Patient Safety Innovation, its top distinction, for a first-of-its kind program that stresses collaboration among employees from the frontlines to the executive offices and centers around patient and family-centered care, outcomes and employee engagement.
Northwest Hospital and Levindale are part of https://lbhstaging22.lifebridgehealth.org