Evangelical Community Hospital Recognized in Inaugural Pennsylvania Maternal Health Designation Awards Ceremony

HARRISBURG, PA – Evangelical Community Hospital is a recipient of the Pennsylvania Perinatal Quality Collaborative (PA PQC) inaugural Designations Awards which were presented at its annual conference in Harrisburg on May 22, 2024.

Designation signifies the hospital has established multidisciplinary teams that have demonstrated improvements in maternal and newborn care by sharing best practices and data in their hospital and community.

Hospitals had the opportunity to earn a Designation for each 2023-24 PA PQC initiative that they actively participated in, including: Immediate Postpartum Long-Acting Reversible Contraception (IPLARC), substance use disorders (SUD), and substance exposed newborn (SEN).

Evangelical, through the work of its obstetric unit, The Family Place, earned a silver designation to recognize its work in the issue area of SUD with a focus on health equity and a bronze designation in SEN. A silver designation signifies the Hospital’s proven commitment to incorporating health equity or patient voice into its quality improvement work. A bronze designation signifies the Hospital met the required quality improvement submission criteria for at least 2 of the 4 quarters.

Designation awards and levels are based on meeting quality improvement milestone criteria over a 12-month period, starting from April 2023 through March 2024.

In Pennsylvania, perinatal health issues persist, including racial and ethnic disparities in maternal and neonatal outcomes, higher than average maternal sepsis rates, and drug overdose deaths during pregnancy and postpartum. The PA PQC addresses these challenges through various initiatives, including Maternal Opioid Use Disorder, Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome, Maternal Sepsis, and Safe Sleep. Through collaborative efforts, the PA PQC aims to improve maternal and neonatal health outcomes across the state.

The PA PQC is administered by the Jewish Healthcare Foundation and WHAMglobal, and it is affiliated with the Northeastern PA PQC (NEPaPQC).

PHOTO:
The team of nurses at The Family Place, the obstetrics unit of Evangelical Community Hospital, has committed to continuing education on issues impacting mothers and babies, including substance use disorders and substance exposed newborns. The Family Place is dedicated to creating a warm, welcoming, and safe birthing environment for all women and their partners.

Representing The Family Place at the Pennsylvania Perinatal Quality Collaborative (PA PQC) Annual Conference and receiving the Hospital’s silver and bronze award designations were Amy Noaker, RN, BSN; Susan Payne, RN, BSN, MSN; and Kelly Everitt, RN, BSN, IBCLC.