Quality Improvement Specialist

Hackensack Meridian Health•Perth Amboy, NJ

22h

About The Position

The Quality Improvement Specialist provides leadership for quality and safety improvement initiatives in conjunction with regional and system quality and safety leaders and the local Director of Patient Safety & Quality. The role collaborates with initiative-focused groups, clinical transformation services, and quality councils to achieve sustainable improvements through project and program management, process and system mapping, reliability science, data-driven strategies, evidence-based practices, and quality improvement methods. Knowledge of front-line clinical operations supports oversight of initiatives intended to improve quality and patient safety and strengthen the culture of safety for patients and team members. The specialist leads and supports improvement teams, identifies priorities, analyzes performance and event data, develops and reports metrics, investigates events, and provides coaching to clinical, administrative, and support staff. The position also supports regulatory compliance, safety culture, shared learning, root cause analysis, and dissemination of improvement methods and results.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in healthcare or health science.
Five years of experience in health care.
Proficiency with computer applications and software, including Outlook, Word, PowerPoint, and Excel.
Excellent written and oral communication skills, including the ability to present to various organizational levels.
NPSF CPPS certification within one year of hire.

Nice To Haves

Master's degree and/or professional degree and certification.
Performance improvement experience.
Experience in statistics or clinical research.
Understanding of The Joint Commission and regulatory standards.
Certified Professional in Patient Safety.

Responsibilities

Facilitate and lead teams working on quality and safety initiatives, and develop methods to engage and develop team members.
Identify improvement priorities based on evidence-based practice and relevant regulatory and accrediting requirements.
Bring safety and quality events, concerns, and needs to local morning safety huddles.
Encourage event reporting and transparency to identify precursor and safety events.
Identify and implement data-driven strategies to support team success.
Use the Quality Scorecard to drive improvements across initiative-focused work, clinical transformation services, and quality councils.
Provide expert knowledge, leadership, and mentoring in patient safety and quality initiatives using safety and high-reliability science.
Work with personnel at all levels to develop and coordinate patient safety programs, providing coaching and hands-on support.
Create and maintain timely, thorough progress reports, including key driver diagrams, run charts, and PDSA testing documentation.
Develop metrics and report quality and safety measures demonstrating improvement across the medical center and network.
Provide timely, actionable feedback and reports to clinical, administrative, and support staff.
Analyze and investigate event reports related to assigned clinical areas.
Ensure appropriate event referrals and follow-up, including escalation for regulatory reporting.
Promote transparency, high reliability, and safety culture by participating in and facilitating safety huddles, patient safety activities, just culture reinforcement, and shared learning.
Facilitate the NPSF RCA-2 process as needed and support shared learning within clinical areas and across the institution and network.
Disseminate improvement methods, results, and lessons learned; present improvement work at local, national, and international forums.
Monitor standards of practice for compliance with internal and external regulatory and accrediting requirements, including The Joint Commission, New Jersey and federal codes such as DOH and OSHA, and professional review organizations.
Analyze performance trends over time and compare results with internal and external benchmarks to identify opportunities and track progress.
Coordinate and mentor team members in quality projects and assist with unit council performance improvement work.
Attend root cause analysis meetings related to assigned initiative groups, clinical transformation services, or quality council areas.
Identify actual or potential safety issues affecting patients and team members.
Maintain and extend expertise through seminars, workshops, and professional networking opportunities.
Adhere to Hackensack Meridian Health organizational competencies.