VA Hospitals in Florida and Puerto Rico Recognized Nationally for Patient Safety Practices
St. Peterburg, Florida (PRWEB) December 19, 2014 -- Five of seven VA hospital systems in the VA Sunshine Healthcare Network (VISN 8) have been recognized nationally as a 2014 Cornerstone Recognition Award Gold winner by the VA National Center for Patient Safety (NCPS). Among the VA’s 111 facilities nationwide to be recognized, these five healthcare systems are among only 65 total that received the Gold award.
The Cornerstone Award recognizes accomplishments for patient safety at the facility level related to the Root Cause Analysis (RCA) process, health care quality and patient safety. The RCA process helps identify what, how and why something happened, thus preventing recurrence of adverse health care-related events and “close calls.” Annually, NCPS recognizes VA healthcare systems in three categories: gold, silver and bronze according to how they meet standardized criteria.
Receiving Gold Cornerstone recognition in VISN 8 are the Bay Pines VA Healthcare System in St. Petersburg, Fla., (C.W. Bill Young VA Medical Center); the North Florida/South Georgia Veterans Healthcare System (Malcom Randall VAMC in Gainesville, Fla., and Lake City VAMC in Lake City, Fla); the Orlando VAMC, Orlando, Fla.; the James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital in Tampa, Fla.; and the VA Caribbean Healthcare System (San Juan VAMC).
Of note, this is the fifth consecutive year that Bay Pines, Tampa and the Orlando VAMC facilities have achieved gold status. North Florida/South Georgia Veterans Health System was awarded gold for three consecutive years (four awards total) as has the San Juan VAMC.
"Our focus throughout VISN 8 is to provide the highest level of safety and quality to our Veteran patients. This national recognition demonstrates our collective dedication and commitment to patient safety,” said Joleen Clark, VISN 8 Network Director.
The NCPS was established by VA in 1999 to develop and nurture a culture of safety throughout the Veterans Health Administration. The Cornerstone Recognition Award program was later established by the national center in 2008 to enhance the RCA process and recognize the work done in patient safety at VA health care facilities across the country. To learn more about VA’s approach to patient safety, please visit http://www.patientsafety.va.gov/about/approach.asp.
ABOUT VISN 8: The VA Sunshine Healthcare Network (VISN 8) is the nation’s largest system of hospitals and clinics and is home to more than 1.6 million Veterans in a vast 64,153 square mile area spread across 79 counties in Florida, South Georgia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. VISN 8’s seven healthcare systems include eight Joint Commission-accredited VA medical centers and more than 55 outpatient clinics.
Over 26,000 full-time VISN employees work at these facilities, providing a full range of high quality, cost-effective medical, psychiatric and extended care services in an inpatient, outpatient, nursing home, and home care settings. In 2014, nearly 570,000 Veterans received their healthcare at VISN 8 facilities. The VISN office is located in the Franklin Templeton Office complex, Bldg. 100, Suite 600, St Petersburg, Fla. To locate a VISN 8 facility, visit the VA Sunshine Healthcare Network.
Media Contact: Susan Wentzell
Deputy Communication Manager
VA Sunshine Healthcare Network (VISN 8)
(727) 575-8072 | e-mail: susan.wentzell(at)va(dot)gov
Susan Wentzell, VA Sunshine Healthcare Network (VISN 8), http://www.visn8.va.gov, +1 727-452-7942, [email protected]
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