Hospital for special surgery (HSS) launched new Quality Research Center with an innovative structure for applying research methodologies to health-care quality issues.
Physicians, nurses and biostatisticians throughout the institution will now, through this new initiative, work together on conducting research in areas that impact on quality of patient care and patient safety. The research generated from the Center will enable HSS to improve best practices to benefit its patients and also allow HSS to provide evidence-based data that can be published and disseminated to other institutions.
“We have been conducting research on quality initiatives for many years within nursing, risk management, quality assurance, epidemiology and several other departments,” said Steven Magid, M.D., professor of clinical medicine, chair of the newly-formed Quality Research Center. “The establishment of this Center will allow us to integrate studies being conducted throughout the institution, facilitate a system to gather and share data and data sources, disseminate findings through publications and presentations, and initiate and direct resources for projects in a systematic way. Additionally, we are now in a better position to connect quality outcomes with data, laboratory systems, demographics and financial systems.”
One of the first research initiatives that the Center will focus on that affects hospitals throughout the country involves identifying the underlying elements to prevent patient falls. Nurses have 10 years of retrospective data on this important topic. Other research under the Center’s domain will include prospective studies looking at trending and stratifying data on infections after spine surgery and peripheral nerve injury leading to motor weakness.
“The Quality Research Center will enable us to support our mission of providing the highest possible quality patient care through research,” said Louis A. Shapiro, president and CEO of Hospital for Special Surgery. “Under Dr. Magid’s leadership, the Center will undertake studies based on quality initiatives to demonstrate in a reproducible way how Special Surgery and other institutions can minimize risk using research principles, methodologies and standards.”
In addition to Dr. Magid, the Center includes the expertise of Michelle Horvath, R.N., assistant vice president, quality management; Stephen Lyman, Ph.D., director, epidemiology and biostatistics; Lisa Mandl, M.D., clinician scientist, rheumatology/research division; Joanne Melia, director, risk management; and Patricia Quinlan, Ph.D., research coordinator, nursing administration, as well as dedicated personnel for the research that will be conducted.
About Hospital for Special Surgery
Founded in 1863, Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) is a world leader in orthopedics, rheumatology and rehabilitation. HSS is nationally ranked No. 2 in orthopedics, No. 3 in rheumatology and No. 24 in neurology by U.S.News & World Report (2009), and has received Magnet Recognition for Excellence in Nursing Service from the American Nurses Credentialing Center, and has one of the lowest infection rates in the country. In 2008 and 2007, HSS was a recipient of the HealthGrades Joint Replacement Excellence Award. A member of the NewYork-Presbyterian Healthcare System and an affiliate of Weill Cornell Medical College, HSS provides orthopedic and rheumatologic patient care at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital at New York Weill Cornell Medical Center. All Hospital for Special Surgery medical staff are on the faculty of Weill Cornell Medical College. The hospital's research division is internationally recognized as a leader in the investigation of musculoskeletal and autoimmune diseases. Hospital for Special Surgery is located in New York City and online at www.hss.edu .
