Institute for Healthcare Improvement: From the Top: The Role of the Board in Quality and Safety

2007 — The Year of Governance

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The June 2007 program is now full. If you would like to be placed on an interest list for future offerings, please contact Cindy Betti-Sullivan at cbetti@ihi.org or (617) 301-4912. We plan to offer this program again in October 2007 on the west coast. Enrollment will be available in early June.

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Does your board of directors discuss finance in more detail than issues of quality and safety?
Could your board send a stronger signal to the organization that it is really serious about achieving quality and safety aims?
Is your board overwhelmed by quality data and unable to determine what to do with it?
How can your board more effectively engage with physicians in your quality and safety agenda?
How will your board handle a sentinel event?

“I think that we should declare 2007 ‘The Year of Governance’ and start to put back on the table of the boards not just a request, but an absolute sense of obligation, that learning who does better and then doing at least that well is central to proper stewardship of health care. Until leaders own that problem, I don’t think spread is going to happen. The buck stops in the board room.”

“An Interview with Donald Berwick.” Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety. 2006;32(12):666.

Program Overview

What You'll Learn

To achieve system-level performance improvement, hospitals and systems must have capable, committed leadership in both the executive office and the board room.

Meaningful and sustainable quality improvement cannot occur in any organization without the full support and engagement of the organization’s trustees. Yet, most boards are not comfortable taking responsibility for quality of care. Even those that are focused on quality need practical guidance in how to lead their organization’s quality agenda.

To help address this need, IHI is pleased to offer From the Top: The Role of the Board in Quality and Safety. Led by national experts in governance and quality, this program will improve the capability of your organization’s board to oversee quality and safety endeavors. Participants will be equipped with the practical tools and skills to take responsibility for the quality performance of the organization.

This program is ideal for ahead-of-the-curve organizations that already have quality as a prominent item on their agenda. Ideal participants are those that have had some initial success building the “will” for change within their system and now are ready for the most effective tools for implementing the quality and safety agenda at the top of their organization.

Download program brochure

Participants will learn practical tools for truly leading quality and patient safety endeavors in their organizations.

Participants will learn how to:

Renew and sustain your board’s engagement and commitment to quality and safety
Improve your board’s ability to oversee quality and safety
“Spread” the engagement to all members of the board
Effectively integrate quality into the routine board agenda

Who Should Attend

Leaders — formal and informal — who are responsible for driving quality and patient safety endeavors, including:

Board Chair and Vice Chair
Chief Executive Officer
Chair of Board Quality Committee
Quality Committee members
Any board member interested in quality improvement

Continued Support

After the program, participants are welcome to participate in conference calls with fellow participants and faculty. The calls will be strategically scheduled three, four, and five months after the program, allowing time for participants to gain experience with the tools and to participate in a board meeting at their organization.

The conference calls are a benefit for program participants, but are not mandatory. They provide an excellent opportunity to share experiences and to get additional support from faculty.

Additional Information on Governance and Quality Improvement

Visit IHI.org’s Leading Systems Improvement topic area
Read the IHI Innovation Series White Paper, Leadership Guide to Patient Safety
Learn about six key activities that boards can undertake to improve quality and reduce harm in their hospitals. Download the 5 Million Lives Campaign’s Getting Started Kit on Governance Leadership.