The departmental committee membership provides representation for each of the clinical nursing divisions, policy and procedure committee, nursing administration, nursing education, and nursing research. Representatives from other councils and committees are invited to attend meetings as needed. The membership structure assures that the functions of the committee are all encompassing considering all aspects of nursing services. For additional information contact Debra Picone, PhD, RN (debra-picone@uiowa.edu).

Functions of the Department of Nursing Quality Management Committee are to:

• Develop mechanisms for using evidence-based practice to improve quality of care
• Support nursing staff involvement in collaborative quality initiatives that improve organizational performance and patient outcomes
• Oversee the integration and coordination of quality and outcomes management initiatives across sites and levels of care
• Assist nursing staff to interpret and use data from internal and external sources to improve care or resolve identified problems
• Promote safe practices by infusing a culture of safety for both patients and staff.
• Promote the use of an institutional set of core outcome indicators to monitor and improve care
• Facilitate performance improvement efforts of department and interdisciplinary teams
• Coordinate or conduct interdisciplinary performance improvements that impact patient care delivery from multiple services
• Provide education and consultation to internal and external constituents regarding quality and outcomes management activities
• Promote a scientific approach to problem-solving in management and delivery of patient care services
• Promote discussion and exchange of information regarding status and progress of evidence-based practice, and process improvement projects
• Assist Department of Nursing staff, and performance improvement teams, to comply with UI Hospitals and Clinics institutional processes for conducting and reporting quality activities

Each of the five clinical nursing divisions has a Quality Management Committee to implement quality initiatives at the divisional and unit level. Membership on the divisional committee is appointed by the Associate Director for Clinical Services for their respective nursing division. The chairs of each of the divisional Quality Management Committees are:

Intensive and Specialty Services
Karen Stenger, RN, MA, CCRN (karen-stenger@uiowa.edu)

Medical/Surgical Services
Grace Matthews, RN, MSN (grace-matthews@uiowa.edu)
Renee Gould, RN (renee-gould@uiowa.edu)

Behavioral Health Services
Curtis Long, RN, MSN (curtis-long@uiowa.edu)

Perioperative Nursing Services
Victoria Steelman, RN, PhD (victoria-steelman@uiowa.edu)

Children's and Women's Services
Stephanie Stewart, RNC, MSN (stephanie-stewart@uiowa.edu)

Functions of the divisional Quality Management Committees are to:

• Assure adoption of the Iowa Model of Evidence-Based Practice
• Institute a divisional quality and outcomes management program that incorporates sentinel event reporting, patient safety, and continuous quality improvement activities
• Assist nursing staff in interpreting and using data from internal and external sources to improve care or resolve identified problems
• Promote the use of a core set of outcome indicators
• Facilitate performance improvement efforts of departmental and interdisciplinary teams
• Provide leadership for use of research findings as an integral component of clinical practice and management decision making
• Develop mechanisms for adoption of evidence-based practices to improve patient outcomes
• Prioritize divisional performance improvements based on the following criteria: enhance the quality of care; improve customer service; manage costs; enhance the UI Hospitals and Clinics' ability to manage current markets and/or develop new markets; demonstrate the impact of nursing care on patient outcomes
• Track divisional participation in institutional and interdisciplinary performance improvement teams
• Coordinate reporting of divisional quality and outcome management initiatives including clinical benchmarking, interdisciplinary process improvement, and quality management teams.

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Scope and Responsibility

Nursing Quality Management Committee

Core Indicators

Quality Management Quarterly Reporting

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