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Ochsner Journal March 2018, 18 (S1) 1-6; DOI: https://doi.org/10.31486/toj.NI2018
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OVERVIEW OF THE ALLIANCE OF INDEPENDENT ACADEMIC MEDICAL CENTERS NATIONAL INITIATIVE

Why a National Initiative?

Both the public and our profession acknowledge that quality and safety efforts are falling short, and many hospitals and healthcare systems are seeking rapid improvements in patient care. Those of us in academic medicine realize that residents play an important role in patient care at teaching institutions; however, residents are generally not visible in safety and quality efforts. The Alliance of Independent Academic Medical Centers (AIAMC) recognized that resident quality improvement efforts—shared across multiple programs and systems—had the potential to improve care quickly and effectively.

Role of the AIAMC

The AIAMC was founded in 1989 as a national network of large academic medical centers. Membership in the association is unique in that AIAMC members are affiliated with medical schools but are independent of medical school ownership or governance. Approximately 80 major medical centers across the United States are members, representing more than 750 senior academic leaders.

National Initiative I

In early 2007, the AIAMC launched Improving Patient Care Through GME: A National Initiative of Independent Academic Medical Centers. The National Initiative (NI) featured 5 meetings over the course of 18 months that served as touchstones for ongoing quality improvement in 19 AIAMC participating organizations. These meetings, as well as the monthly collaborative calls held in between, provided structure, discussion, and networking opportunities around specific quality improvement initiatives. NI I was supported by a grant from the foundation of HealthPartners Institute for Medical Education, an AIAMC member institution located in Minneapolis, MN. As a result of these efforts, we developed initial findings that demonstrated the efficacy of integrating GME into patient safety and quality improvement initiatives. These findings were organized into a series of articles that were published in the December 2009 issue of Academic Medicine.

National Initiative II

In 2009, we launched NI II and expanded participation to 35 AIAMC-member teaching hospitals from Seattle to Maine. Each participating hospital developed a quality improvement team led by a resident or faculty member. These teams met onsite 4 times and participated in monthly conference calls over an 18-month period. Quality improvement projects focused on one of the following areas: communication, handoffs, infection control, readmissions, and transitions of care. Results from NI II were published in a variety of publications, including the February 2011 issue of the AAMC Reporter, and in the May/June 2012 special supplement issue of the American Journal of Medical Quality.

National Initiative III

NI III, launched in 2011 with 35 teams, built on the strengths of the first 2 NIs and moved beyond direct support of local quality improvement teams to the development of teaching leadership and changing organizational culture to support quality improvement initiatives. Graduate medical education and continuing medical education were emphasized as platforms for improving patient care. The focus of NI III was faculty/leadership development. We recognized that part of our responsibility as medical educators was to train the next generation of practicing physicians; thus, residents must be considered as junior faculty and were integral in this effort. Results from NI III were published in a variety of publications, including the Spring 2014 issue of the Ochsner Journal and the Journal of the American College of Surgeons.

National Initiative IV

NI IV: Achieving Mastery of CLER, launched in 2013 with 34 AIAMC-member and—for the first time—nonmember teams, focused on navigating the ACGME’s Clinical Learning Environment Review (CLER) program. The CLER program was designed to evaluate the level of institutional responsibility for the quality and safety of the learning and patient care environment, and NI IV provided teams the training and guidance necessary to identify strengths and weaknesses across the 6 focus areas and significantly and measurably advance the institutional level of preparedness. Results from NI IV were published in numerous publications, including the Journal of Graduate Medical Education and the Ochsner Journal, the official publication of the AIAMC National Initiatives.

National Initiative V

NI V: Improving Community Health and Health Equity Through Medical Education launched in fall 2015 with 29 AIAMC member teams participating and focused on navigating the disparities component of the ACGME’s Clinical Learning Environment program. Four onsite learning sessions addressed understanding and engaging with institutional leaders in the Community Health Needs Assessments; graduate medical education in improving health equity, cultural competency, and community engagement; and how to better engage the C-suite. NI V concluded in March 2017, and various writing teams are preparing manuscripts for publication.

The AIAMC National Initiative is the only national and multiinstitutional collaborative of its kind in which residents lead multidisciplinary teams in quality improvement projects aligned to their institution’s strategic goals. Fifty-eight hospitals and health systems and nearly 700 individuals have participated in the AIAMC National Initiatives since 2007 and have driven change that resulted in meaningful and sustainable outcomes that improved the quality and safety of patient care.

Kimberly Pierce-Boggs

AIAMC Executive Director

www.aiamc.org

kimberly{at}aiamc.org

312-836-3712

ALLIANCE OF INDEPENDENT ACADEMIC MEDICAL CENTERS BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Ronald G. Amedee, MD

Designated Institutional Official

Ochsner Health System

Laurinda Calongne, EdD

Chief Academic Officer

Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center

Lynne A. Chafetz, JD

Senior Vice President and General Counsel

Virginia Mason Medical Center

Robert Dressler, MD, MBA

Quality and Safety Officer, Academic and Medical Affairs

Christiana Care Health System

Judith A. Gravdal, MD

Chairman, Family Medicine

Advocate Lutheran General Hospital

Kevin T. Hinchey, MD

Chief Academic Officer

Baystate Medical Center

Joseph Jaeger, DrPH

Chief Academic Officer

Monmouth Medical Center

David S. Kountz, MD

Vice President, Academic Affairs

Jersey Shore University Medical Center

Barry D. Mann, MD

Chief Academic Officer

Main Line Health

Tsveti Markova, MD

Designated Institutional Official

Crittenton Hospital Medical Center

Shelly Monks, MBA

System Vice President, Education

Ochsner Health System

Brian D. Owens, MD

Director of Graduate Medical Education

Virginia Mason Medical Center

Joseph Portoghese, MD

Chief Academic Officer

Florida Hospital

Deborah Simpson, PhD

Director, Medical Education Programs

Aurora Health Care

ALLIANCE OF INDEPENDENT ACADEMIC MEDICAL CENTERS COMMITTEE ON THE INTEGRATION OF ACADEMICS AND QUALITY – NATIONAL INITIATIVE V

Rob Dressler, MD, MBA, Chairman

Christiana Care Health System

Hania Wehbe-Janek, PhD, Vice-Chairman

Baylor Scott & White Health

Lynne A. Chafetz, JD

Virginia Mason Medical Center

Alex Dummett, MD

Kaiser Permanente Northern California

Jehan El-Bayoumi, MD

Rodham Institute

Judith A. Gravdal, MD

Advocate Health Care – Advocate Lutheran General Hospital

Victor Herrera, MD

Florida Hospital

David S. Kountz, MD

Meridian Health – Jersey Shore University Medical Center

Chinwe Onyekere, MPH

Main Line Health System – Lankenau Medical Center

Kimberly Pierce-Boggs

Alliance of Independent Academic Medical Centers

ALLIANCE OF INDEPENDENT ACADEMIC MEDICAL CENTERS National Initiative V Participating Institutions and Team Leaders

Advocate Health Care – Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center

Mohammed Samee, MD

Barbra White, MHA

Advocate Health Care – Advocate Lutheran General Hospital

Judith A. Gravdal, MD

Aurora Health Care

Jeffrey Stearns, MD

Bassett Medical Center

James Dalton, MD

Charlotte Hoag

Baylor Scott & White (Scott & White)

Austin Metting, MD, FACP

Baylor Scott & White (Baylor University Medical Center)

Cristie Columbus, MD

Christiana Care Health System

Arlene Smalls, MD

Regina Smith, DO

Cleveland Clinic – Akron General Medical Center

Cheryl Goliath, PhD

Crittenton Hospital Medical Center

Tsveti Markova, MD, FAAFP

Florida Hospital

Victor Herrera, MD

Guthrie/Robert Packer Hospital

Victor Kolade, MD

Hackensack Meridian Health – Jersey Shore University Medical Center

David S. Kountz, MD

HealthPartners Institute for Education and Research

Julie Cole, MPP

Miguel Ruiz, MD

HonorHealth Scottsdale Healthcare Osborn

Javier Zayas-Bazan, MD

Kaiser Permanente Northern California

Theresa Azevedo, BA

Main Line Health System – Bryn Mawr Hospital

Joseph Greco, MD, FAAFP

Ochsner Clinic Foundation

Raja Gala, MD

Orlando Health

Kwabena Ayesu, MD

OSF Saint Francis Medical Center

Caroline Kim-Kupfer, MD

Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center

Laurinda Calongne, EdD

Lauren Rabalais, MPA

RWJBarnabas Health – Monmouth Medical Center

Joseph Jaeger, DrPH

Alex Puma

Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center

Jeri Hepworth, PhD

Marcus McKinney, DMin, LPC

Sparrow Hospital

Lisa Powell, MBA

Swedish Medical Center

Leah Baruch, MD

I-Nong Lee, MHA

Andie Lesowske, MD

Sandra B. Norris, MBA

Isabelle Trepiccione, MD

Hailey Wilson, MD

The Christ Hospital Health Network

Jennifer Reemtsma, MEd

TriHealth, Inc.

Dave Dhanraj, MD

Elizabeth (Lily) Browning, DO

UnityPoint Health – Des Moines

Chanteau Ayers, JD

Virginia Mason Medical Center

Brian D. Owens, MD

Gillian Abshire, RN

Leah Geyer, MD

Elly Bhatraju, MD

ABBREVIATIONS/ACRONYMS

ACGME
Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education
CEO
Chief executive officer
CHNA
Community Health Needs Assessment
CLER
Clinical Learning Environment Review
CT
Computed tomography
ED
Emergency department
EHR
Electronic health record
EMR
Electronic medical record
ENT
Ear, nose, and throat
GME
Graduate medical education
HIPAA
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996
IRB
Institutional review board
IT
Information technology
LGBTQ
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer
NI V
National Initiative V
OBGYN
Obstetrics and gynecology
PCP
Primary care provider
PDSA
Plan, Do, Study, Act
REAL-G
Race, ethnicity, age, language-gender
RN
Registered nurse
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Ochsner Journal: 18 (S1)
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Mar 2018
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    • OVERVIEW OF THE ALLIANCE OF INDEPENDENT ACADEMIC MEDICAL CENTERS NATIONAL INITIATIVE
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    • ALLIANCE OF INDEPENDENT ACADEMIC MEDICAL CENTERS COMMITTEE ON THE INTEGRATION OF ACADEMICS AND QUALITY – NATIONAL INITIATIVE V
    • ALLIANCE OF INDEPENDENT ACADEMIC MEDICAL CENTERS National Initiative V Participating Institutions and Team Leaders
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