The Joint Commission today released Pioneers in Quality™: Proven Practices Collection 2019, a publication recognizing 25 U.S. hospitals and health systems that have successfully leveraged electronic clinical quality measures (eCQMs) and health information technology to advance quality improvement.

Through eCQMs – which rely on structured, encoded data present in the electronic health record (EHR) – health care organizations electronically collect and transmit data on the quality of care patients receive. This data is analyzed to measure and improve care processes, performance and outcomes. 

The 2019 Collection details organizations’ proven practices, offering innovative ideas to help hospitals overcome eCQM and health IT barriers and challenges by learning from experiences of their peers. All initiatives in the Collection are replicable, and hospitals are encouraged to tailor them to their individual performance measurement needs.

An Expert Contributor is a hospital or health system that submits an eCQM Proven Practice, featured in the Collection, determined by the Pioneers in Quality™ Advisory Panel that exemplifies exceptionally strong applicability and specific, concrete recommendations for other organizations to improve their own eCQM use. A hospital or health system may also be named an Expert Contributor for participation in measure development and testing activities.

This year’s five Expert Contributors with a Proven Practice featured in the 2019 Collection:

• Baptist Health, Jacksonville, Florida
• Johns Hopkins Health System, Baltimore
• Memorial Hermann/QPSIC & ISD Enterprise Analytics, Houston
• Terre Haute Regional Hospital/HCA, Terre Haute, Indiana
• University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), Pittsburgh 

This year’s 13 Expert Contributors that participated in measure development and testing activities:

• Allegheny Health Network, Allegheny General, Pittsburgh
• Allegheny Health Network, Allegheny Valley, Natrona Heights, Pennsylvania
• Allegheny Health Network, Jefferson Hospital, Jefferson Hills, Pennsylvania
• BJC HealthCare, St. Louis
• J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia
• Memorial Hermann Hospital System, Houston
• Mount Sinai Hospital, New York
• Munson Medical Center, Traverse City, Michigan
• NYU Langone Health - Tisch Hospital, New York
• NYU Langone Health - Kimmel Pavilion, New York
• NYU Langone Orthopedic Hospital, New York
• NYU Langone Hospital – Brooklyn, New York
• University of Tennessee Medical Center, Knoxville, Tennessee

A Solution Contributor is a hospital or health system that submits an eCQM Proven Practice to help inform Pioneers in Quality™ program activities and determine trends to include within the Collection.

This year’s 12 Solution Contributors:

• Alecto Healthcare Services Martin’s Ferry, LLC dba East Ohio Regional Hospital, Martins Ferry, Ohio
• Baptist Health, Jacksonville, Florida
• Beaumont Health, Southfield, Michigan
• Bryan Medical Center, Lincoln, Nebraska
• Henry Ford Health System – Allegiance Health, Jackson, Michigan
• Johns Hopkins Health System, Baltimore
• Memorial Hermann/QPSIC & ISD Enterprise Analytics, Houston
• NorthBay Healthcare, Fairfield, California
• Terre Haute Regional Hospital/HCA, Terre Haute, Indiana
• Texas Health Resources, Arlington, Texas
• University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), Pittsburgh
• Western Maryland Health System, Cumberland, Maryland

“We are finding that organizations are moving beyond eCQM implementation to eCQM utilization to drive performance improvement,” says David W. Baker, MD, MPH, FACP, executive vice president, Division of Health Care Quality Evaluation, The Joint Commission. “The hospitals and health systems being recognized are gathering and analyzing performance data essential to continuously improving care, performance and outcomes for all patients.” 

Pioneers in Quality™ assists accredited hospitals in their transition to eCQM adoption through continuing education webinars and other education programs, a resource portal, speaker’s bureau outreach and more. For more information, visit The Joint Commission website.