PATIENTY SAFETY HERO AWARD Ribbon

Hospital Quality Director earns Patient Safety Hero Award

The Kentucky Hospital Association (KHA) recently awarded a member of Trigg County Hospital's clinical quality staff with a Patient Safety Hero Award. Brenda Scott, Director of Quality, was honored for her significant contributions to clinical improvement in reducing patient harm and improving quality at Trigg County Hospital.

KHA was awarded a three-year contract by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to support the Partnership for Patients (PfP) campaign in order to improve the quality, safety, and affordability of health care for all Americans. Through PfP, KHA established the Kentucky Hospital Engagement Network (K-HEN) to help hospitals in the state identify ways to improve patient safety and share strategies that have been successfully implemented among hospitals statewide.

Scott received the K-HEN Patient Safety Hero Award for her work and efforts to reduce hospital acquired infections, harm from hospital acquired falls, pressure ulcers, and blood clots (known as Venous Thromboembolism). The nomination came from the hospital's former Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) Rebecca Springer. The nomination touting Scott's efforts stated, "She has been a mentor, role model, and a high performance team leader to the staff providing education and resources, to ensure that quality underpins her focus on patient care and safety." In addition, the former CNO's nomination included these accolades: "Her (Brenda's) focus on best practices, communication, and shared goals has opened a positive culture change for the hospital, and has us on a path to achieving excellence in patient care and patient safety."

Scott was presented the Patient Safety Hero Award by Donna Meador, K-HEN Project Manager, on January 21. The surprise presentation included a celebration in the hospital's Cafeteria where Scott was congratulated by her co-workers.