Who Should Join

​We are seeking partnership with health care organizations that have quality improvement (QI) knowledge and capability as evidenced by measurable results from previous QI initiatives, a commitment to equity at both the strategic and operational levels, existing partnerships with community organizations, and understand racism and inequities as a systems issue with work required at the personal, team, and institutional levels. In addition, organizations will need to have accessible and usable race, ethnicity, and preferred language (REAL) data to measure equity gaps.

Health care organizations need to select a team comprising senior-level leadership accountable for advancing equity and quality, a project manager, quality improvement leads, a data analyst, community/patient representatives, frontline providers, and staff from equity, community health, and/or population health departments. Teams may also want to include representatives from human resources and information technology. Additionally, teams may find it useful to engage senior-level leadership on the core team and/or as part of a steering committee.

 

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Expectations of Participating Teams

The following are requested from organizations interested in joining the Pursuing Equity Learning and Action Network:

  • A written letter of support from the CEO committing to supporting the advancement of equity across the five components of the IHI framework;
  • One senior leader and one alternate senior leader identified to participate in a quarterly leadership call and to provide a written reply of their reflections on the team's quarterly report;
  • Identification of a multidisciplinary team to participate in the network and work across the five components of the framework, including at least one community partner and one representative from the health system's quality department;
  • Team participation in all network meetings over the 18-month period, including regular virtual calls and team travel to participate in the in-person workshops (workshop travel is covered by the participating organization);
  • Identification of high-priority clinical areas where inequities exist, which will be the focus of the organization's equity improvement work (i.e., the network's focus on equity is intended to strengthen critical existing work rather than create a new, siloed equity improvement project);
  • Quarterly reports that include data submission on changes tested, learning, process data, and outcomes data to be shared with the network and with your designated senior leader;
  • Participation in approximately three calls with program improvement staff to provide your feedback on how IHI can improve your experience and learning in the network;
  • Willingness to share learning, challenges, and data transparently and publicly; and
  • A required commitment from all participating organizations to advancing their understanding of and action to remediate racial inequities at multiple levels, from structural to individually-mediated.

​Criteria to join

  • Committed to advancing equity, with specific initial work demonstrating this commitment
  • Have data systems available to understand and track equity gaps
  • Prepared to share data and learning transparently
  • Willing to work at both the strategic and clinical level
  • Are committed to addressing racism explicitly
  • Engagement of a multi-departmental team​

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