National Health Policy Forum

Site Visit

Date: DECEMBER 9–10, 2004
Title: Quality Improvement in Maryland: Partnerships and Progress
Authors: Judith D. Moore & Lisa Sprague
Summary: This one-and-a-half-day site visit to Easton, Maryland, explored the activities of the Delmarva Foundation, the Quality Improvement Organization (QIO) for Maryland and the District of Columbia. The program reviewed Delmarva’s responsibilities under their Medicare contract and the initiatives they have undertaken with hospitals and other providers to improve health care outcomes and to define, collect, and report quality data. Local hospital officials added their perspective on quality programs and working with Delmarva. Topics of particular interest were health information technology, patient safety, and quality reporting both to government agencies and to consumers.
Related
Materials:
For details on participants' impressions, see the Site Visit Report, published February 17, 2005.