SVMC’s Quality Team: Always Pushing for Excellence

Healthcare Quality Week (October 17-23) is a dedicated time to acknowledge the progress made by health care and quality professionals toward improving patient outcomes and to prepare health care professionals for the many challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. “Throughout the pandemic, one thing that we haven’t compromised on is patient care,” says Vice President of Quality and Regulatory Affairs Dr. Melissa Fuentes, DHA, LCSW, CCM, CPHQ.

While Sierra View Medical Center has faced the same challenges other organizations have in quickly pivoting surrounding constantly changing health care guidelines, the Quality team has kept the same attention to detail in place to make sure that keeping patients safe. “The teams have also thrived in many instances,” says Dr. Fuentes. Despite the pandemic, the hospital recently added to its existing The Joint Commission accreditation by also becoming a Joint Commission-Certified Primary Stroke Care Center. Additionally, the hospital is working on improving policy management with the intent of keeping on top of the latest technology trends and making it easier for all health care leaders in the organization to help manage the more than 1300 policies the hospital must adhere to.

These projects are only a glimpse into the world of the Quality team. Throughout the year, Quality Department team members collaborate with many hospital departments on a variety of projects relating to Quality Assurance and Performance Improvement (QAPI) and survey readiness. The goal of this team is to review and report out on the various quality metrics required by regulatory agencies to both internal and external stakeholders, such as CMS and The Joint Commission. The focus for Quality is to study performance outcomes and identify areas of improvement to ensure safe effective care is delivered every time.

The team reports to Dr. Fuentes and includes:

• Teresa Ramos, Accreditation and Regulatory Coordinator
• Catherine Njoroge, Data Engineer
• Maria Jose Hernandez Alvarado, Administrative Assistant
• Holly Roderick, Quality Specialist
• Valeri Mendez, Quality Specialist
• Karen Taylor, Quality Specialist
• Laura Soares – Stroke and Sepsis Coordinator

Thank you for living out the Sierra View Medical Center Values of Compassion, Collaboration, Accountability, Integrity and Respect in everything you do!

To learn more about Healthcare Quality Week, visit https://nahq.org/event/healthcare-quality-week/. For more information about Sierra View Medical Center’s services, visit https://www.sierra-view.com/hospital-services/