What's New at GWUMC

WASHINGTON — The George Washington University Medical Center received a $5 million grant to serve as the national program office for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s latest commitment to improving health care in the United States. The initiative titled, “Aligning Forces for Quality,” is the largest effort of its kind ever undertaken by a U.S. based philanthropy. Aligning Forces currently includes 14 communities across the country, some representing major metropolitan and rural areas, and others representing entire states. The goals of the program are for these communities to improve health care in ways that are equitable, patient-centered, and sustainable over time.

Bruce Siegel, MD, MPH, research professor and director of the Center for Health Care Quality in GW’s Department of Health Policy in the School of Public Health and Health Services, will serve as the Director of the program. “I am deeply honored to help the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in its efforts to improve the quality of health care for all Americans,” said Siegel. “This initiative will be a catalyst for change in health care. We want to be able to point to the Aligning Forces communities and say that we’ve made a difference in people’s lives.”

As part of this commitment, GW’s Department of Health Policy will coordinate the overall program, provide expert advice and support to the leadership teams funded in each community and a wide range of support  to doctors, hospital health plans and others in each community. Some of the assistance and resources provided by GW will continue efforts already funded by RWJF, such as the Health Information Law Project, which conducts and releases analyses on legal barriers to efforts to improve health care.

“Under the leadership of Dr. Siegel and in partnership with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the School of Public Health and Health Services will help to reduce racial and ethnic disparities and assist in the creation of effective models for national reform,” said Ruth J. Katz, JD, MPH, dean, School of Public Health and Health Services. “We are helping communities across the nation achieve lasting change through better quality health care services.” 

Aligning Forces has already engaged the 14 communities in core activities such as: measuring and publicly reporting on data about health care quality, helping physicians and other providers learn how to improve the care given to their patients, and engaging consumers in various aspects of their own health care. Under the next phase, communities will also work to identify and reduce racial and ethnic gaps in care and more fully engage nurse leaders as critical agents of health care improvement.

This initiative is in-line with the mission of the GW Medical Center as we strive to improve the health and well-being of our local, national and global communities. This could not be a better fit and we are glad to be a part of such an important program,” said John F. Williams, MD, EdD, MPH, Provost and Vice President, GW Medical Center.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation sponsored a major launch of Aligning Forces on June 5, 2008, which featured events at all 14 communities and a major release of new research from the Dartmouth Atlas Project, commissioned by RWJF and the program. To find more information about the initiative and the launch,  go to www.rwjf.org/qualityequality.

About The George Washington University Medical Center
The George Washington University Medical Center is an internationally recognized interdisciplinary academic health center that has consistently provided high-quality medical care in the Washington, DC metropolitan area for 176 years. The Medical Center comprises the School of Medicine and Health Sciences, the 11^th oldest medical school in the country; the School of Public Health and Health Services, the only such school in the nation’s capital; GW Hospital, jointly owned and operated by a partnership between The George Washington University and a subsidiary of Universal Health Services, Inc.; and the GW Medical Faculty Associates, an independent faculty practice plan. For more information about the GW Medical Center, visit www.gwumc.edu.