Hospital Quality Improvement Contractor Initiative

Intiative Goals

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has awarded Hospital Quality Improvement Contractors (HQIC) a four-year contract to:

• Improve behavioral health outcomes with a focus on decreased opioid use and misuse
• Increase patient safety with a focus on harm reduction
• Increase the quality of care transitions with a focus on reducing readmissions
• Support hospitals responding to public health emergencies, including COVID-19

IHA HQIC will build on the quality improvement work of previous quality improvement initiatives. Over the next four years, IHA HQIC hospitals and health systems will focus on various goals, including implementing person and family engagement practices and addressing the following types of inpatient harm:

• Adverse drug events
• Central line-associated bloodstream infections
• Catheter-associated urinary tract infections
• Clostridiodes difficile infection, including antibiotic stewardship
• Pressure ulcers
• Sepsis and septic shock

CMS has emphasized the importance of working with rural hospitals and hospitals that serve vulnerable communities. IHA HQIC gives participating hospitals and health systems the opportunity to share solutions that have been successful in rural, urban and suburban communities across Illinois to prevent harm, save lives and lower healthcare costs.

To contact the IHA’s dedicated HQIC team please email HQIC@team-iha.org.