Implementing Quality First Successfully

Name:		Dan Holdhusen
Title:		Vice President of Public Affairs
Organization:		The Evangelical Lutheran Good Samaritan Society (CCRC and HCBS)
Location:		Sioux Falls, SD
Phone:		605-362-3355
E-mail:		dholdhus@good-sam.com

What was the "spark" that got your organization involved in QF?
As an organization and within each of our 230 facilities (some AAHSA, and some AHCA affiliates), we have always been deliberate about practicing the principles of Continuous Quality Improvement. Quality First was a natural extension of our efforts.

Have you reviewed the information on the QF Web site?
Yes. We appreciated knowing that other providers had pledged, and reviewing the resources and success stories that others offered. We then saw that the focus of the program affirmed and furthered what we had already been doing to improve quality.

Does your organization have a Quality First leader ... an individual or committee?
Yes, each of our centers has a "Quality Committee," which may be called by different names. For the most part, they were all in existence and operating prior to the announcement of the Quality First initiative. Organizationally, we have signed the Quality First pledge on behalf of our individual facilities. The challenge for us has been to align what we have already been doing with regard to a systematic quality improvement program to the principles espoused in Quality First.

Has your organization done anything to get public recognition (with your residents/clients; consumers; policymakers; media) for your Quality First accomplishments?
Yes, some of our centers have applied for and received quality awards from various organizations, including AAHSA and AHCA. We also have developed an Intranet system and process of sharing best practices among centers.

What has been the most beneficial aspect of QF for your organization?
Affirms what we've already been doing. Provides a framework for all centers to understand the importance of practicing CQI. We call our program "Journey to Quality."

Have you budgeted staff or financial resources to your QF efforts, or are the time/costs integrated into your other work?
Costs for CQI efforts are budgeted; however not for Quality First, per se.

Looking ahead a year, what do you see as the biggest opportunity for your organization with respect to QF?
We have worked hard at "ingraining" or "inculcating" the need and value of CQI into our centers' everyday operations; we must understand our CQI efforts in light of Quality First.

Members have voiced several reasons for not signing the QF Covenant, including: We already run a quality organization; we don't want to expose ourselves to greater liability; we're too busy. What would you say to encourage these members to sign the QF Covenant?
Get on board...you've got nothing to lose and everything to gain. Quality measures and Continuous Quality Improvement will not only be mandatory to meet the consumers' needs in the coming years, but also the right thing to do!


January 27, 2005