The International Geriatric Fracture Society (IGFS) is proud to announce that St. Joseph Medical Center, based in Kansas City, MO, has secured IGFS CORE Certification for its Geriatric Fracture Care program. The program at St. Joseph Medical Center, a member of Prime Healthcare, joins a small collection of trailblazing fracture care programs in the United States that have achieved recognition for high quality care.
The CORE Certification Program is a global quality improvement initiative designed to recognize the achievements of programs that exceed outcome benchmarks in the management of geriatric fractures. In receiving this recognition, St. Joseph Medical Center’s team of dedicated professionals illustrated their ability to achieve sustained outcomes that outperform the clinical quality and performance improvement benchmarks as identified by the IGFS over the past two years.
Daniel Mendelson, President of the IGFS from Highland Hospital in Rochester, NY, stated “The commitment to education and training to maximize outcomes for geriatric hip fracture patients is a hallmark of the program at St. Joseph Medical Center. Education regarding the care of this unique patient population is spread across the enterprise including presentations at their quarterly town hall meetings, monthly leadership meetings, physician communication meetings, and unit staff meetings.”
Kim Chalmers, Supervisor, St. Joseph Medical Center Senior Care, said, “In 2017, St. Joseph Medical Center launched Senior Care Services, a comprehensive geriatric service line providing tailored care to the aging adults in our community. The IGFS Core Certification will enhance these services, a continuation of our commitment to seniors.” She added, “More importantly, at the heart of this program is a commitment to collaboration and a focus on outcomes rather than strictly processes, which will add to our patients’ quality of care and successful recovery.”
IGFS Certification Specialist, Michele Gingo MS, RN, ONC, Director, Wound Care, Quality & Care Continuum, Musculoskeletal Institute at Geisinger Medical Center, noted, “I recommend certification for the program without hesitation. St. Joseph Medical Center reported their metrics, all of which are better than the national average. They reported the use of the AAOS Hip Fracture CPG. They utilize standardized order sets and their program coordinator, Kim Chalmers, has done a great job bringing these elements together in a comprehensive program that will truly benefit seniors in the Kansas City area.”
The mission of the IGFS is to promote co-management of fragility fractures centered around an inter-disciplinary team that focuses on key quality indicators such as time to surgery, readmission rates, mortality, and osteoporosis education. The CORE Certification Program was developed by the IGFS team of international experts representing thought-leaders in Asia, Europe, North America, and South America. This is the first major initiative of the organization to recognize achievements of Geriatric Fracture Care Programs that are delivering the highest quality care to this patient population.
About the International Geriatric Fracture Society (IGFS)
Founded in 2012, the IGFS is a non-profit, 501(c)6 designated organization whose membership includes some of the world’s premier thought-leaders on geriatric fracture care management. The mission of the Society is to be recognized as the foremost international authority for collaboration on the delivery of evidenced-based, patient- centered care for the treatment of geriatric or fragility fractures.
About St. Joseph Medical Center
St. Joseph Medical Center is a faith-based, 274-bed hospital providing a wide range of acute care and outpatient services. Key services include the Senior Care Services, St. Joseph Heart Institute, Breast Center and Joint and Spine Institute. St. Joseph is a member of Prime Healthcare, one of the nation’s leading hospital systems for clinical excellence.
Prime Healthcare and its hospitals have been recognized as among the “100 Top Hospitals” in the nation 38 times and among the “15 Top Health Systems” three times, and Prime Healthcare is the only “Top 10 Health System” west of the Mississippi. We believe that continuous, quality of care and performance improvements are the foundation for preserving and enhancing healthcare delivery. For more information, visit stjosephkc.com.