Minnesota Hospital Association

Newsroom

December 11, 2017

MHA joins ABMS Multi-Specialty Portfolio Program

Physicians Across Minnesota Can Obtain Board Certification Credit for Quality and Practice Improvement Activities    

SAINT PAUL, Minn. – December 11, 2017 – The American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) has announced that the Minnesota Hospital Association (MHA) has joined the ABMS Multi-Specialty Portfolio Program™ (Portfolio Program). Hospitals and health systems participating in MHA’s continuous quality and patient safety improvement activities can now support Maintenance of Certification (MOC) Improvement in Medical Practice (Part IV) credit for physicians who are Board Certified by one of the 20 of 24 ABMS Member Boards participating in the Portfolio Program.   

Through ABMS MOC Improvement in Medical Practice credit, physicians can meet the requirements for maintaining their certification while meaningfully participating in quality and patient safety improvement programs in their organizations. MHA member hospitals and health systems are currently engaged in improvement efforts across the care continuum on clinical topics such as surgery and procedural care, healthcare-associated infections, medication safety, sepsis, delirium, falls, pressure injuries and many other types of adverse health events and harm across the board. Physicians’ roles in these improvement initiatives may range from being an engaged team member, to acting as a physician champion, to actively serving on MHA’s statewide quality committees.   

“Leading and sustaining continuous quality and safety improvement across Minnesota will take all team members acting in unison in service of our patients, families and communities,” said Rahul Koranne, MD, MBA, FACP, MHA Chief Medical Officer. “We are honored to partner with ABMS to facilitate MOC credit. Closely aligning physicians’ pursuit of their continuing Board Certification with hospitals’ and health systems’ quality improvement efforts will minimize duplication, confusion and waste while helping further accelerate Minnesota’s continuous quality improvement journey.”   

MHA has led quality and patient safety improvement across Minnesota since it became the first hospital association in the country to employ a leader focused on patient safety improvement 17 years ago. Minnesota’s hospitals and health systems have multiple quality and patient safety initiatives to improve care through evidence-based practices. Minnesota’s leadership on quality and patient safety is recognized throughout the nation and other states look to MHA in creating their own patient safety programs.    

“We are excited to be working with MHA to assist their member hospitals and health systems in engaging their physician partners, and offering them the opportunity to earn MOC credit for their work in these important and impactful quality and practice improvement activities and patient safety programs,” said David W. Price, MD, FAAFP, FACEHP, Executive Director of the Portfolio Program. “The Portfolio Program continues to illustrate how the Boards Community, in partnership with a wide range of health care organizations, can impact patient safety and practice improvement. The activities developed by MHA meet the high standards of the Portfolio Program and lend themselves to helping hospitals and health systems make significant and practical practice and quality improvements that will improve patient safety and improve outcomes.”   

To date, the Portfolio Program has helped engage physicians in quality and practice improvement initiatives at hospitals and health systems across the country, with many showing improvement in care outcomes. Since its inception, more than 2,400 improvement efforts have been completed by Portfolio Program participants.   

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About ABMS
Established in 1933, the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) continues to be the leading not-for-profit organization overseeing physician certification in the United States. ABMS establishes the standards its 24 Member Boards use to develop and implement educational and professional evaluation, assessment, and certification of physician specialists. More than 880,000 physicians are certified in one or more of the approved 39 specialties and 86 subspecialties offered by the ABMS Member Boards.  For more information about ABMS, visit abms.org or call (312) 436-2600.    

About the Minnesota Hospital Association
The Minnesota Hospital Association represents 142 hospitals and health systems, which provide quality care for their patients and meet the needs of their communities.