Quality Improvement

The Division of Newborn Medicine has a robust Quality Improvement (QI) program and is actively engaged in QI as a member of the Vermont-Oxford Network. A QI data manager is devoted full time to active and accurate data collection.

The multidisciplinary team meets biweekly to review outcomes and identify areas for improvement. These include QI projects such as The Golden Hour in the NICU and improving outcomes in surgical patients using QI methodology working with Pediatric Anesthesia, Pediatric Surgery and Neonatology.

Mississippi State Perinatal Quality Collaborative

Mississippi has formed, in close collaboration with the state Department of Health and the neonatologists and obstetricians in the state, a Perinatal Quality Collaborative to improve the outcomes of neonates and pregnant mothers in Mississippi. The UMMC neonatologists are key members of the MSPQC Steering Committee and are actively involved in identifying key areas to address, and use QI methodology to improve outcomes.

Current areas of focus for the MSPQC are the Golden Hour for premature infants, maternal hypertension and family engagement and breast-feeding initiation with successful continuation of breastfeeding.