Swedish Covenant Hospital was recently recognized for its commitment to patient safety and quality with a Quality Excellence Achievement Award in the palliative care category from the Illinois Health and Hospital Association’s (IHA) Institute for Innovations in Care and Quality. The award honors Swedish Covenant Hospital’s quality improvement project, the Implementation of an Outpatient Palliative Care Clinic as part of an Integrated Cancer Care Center.
“We are extremely pleased to offer palliative care to our patients on an outpatient basis and are honored to receive one of only five awards,” said Anthony Guaccio, President and CEO of Swedish Covenant Hospital. “This program would not have been possible without input and effort from many members of our staff. We thank them for their continued leadership in providing quality, innovative and transformative health care to our community.”
Palliative care is being recognized by a growing number of medical providers and patients for the many ways it can benefit all types of patients with serious illnesses. It can provide patients with comfort and support when used with all types of treatment, including curative.
“Palliative care—also known as supportive care—includes treatment of the discomfort, symptoms and stress of serious illness, including advance care planning,” said Integrated Cancer Care Navigator Kayla Wilbur, LCSW. “The true focus of palliative care is to help patients manage their chronic illness and determine their goals for treatment, regardless of where they are in their continuum of care. It’s a great benefit to our patients be able to offer this care on an outpatient basis.”
“The accomplishments of Swedish Covenant Hospital, and all of this year’s award recipients are an inspiration for IHA, our members and the Illinois health care community,” said A.J. Wilhelmi, President and CEO, IHA. “All of our member hospitals strive to provide the highest quality of care for their communities while maximizing their resources, and this recognition is an important part of our work in supporting their efforts.”
Swedish Covenant Hospital’s palliative care project was one of 59 applications IHA received for the Quality Excellence Achievement Awards. More than 20 nationally recognized health care quality experts evaluated submissions based on achieving progress in implementing the Institute for Healthcare Improvement’s Triple Aim—enhancing the patient experience, improving population health and reducing health care costs—and the Institute of Medicine’s six aims for improvement—making the health care system safe, effective, patient-centered, timely, efficient and equitable.
See a video from the IHA Summit Awards below:
Learn more about palliative care at Swedish Covenant Hospital>>
