Duke Health received the Perinatal Quality Collaborative of North Carolina (PQCNC) Quality Improvement Award for 2024. The PQCNC Quality Improvement Award recognizes North Carolina delivery units that have made a measurable and sustained positive change in a major perinatal quality improvement indicator/issue through the implementation of quality improvement activities within the previous three years.
"Over the past three years, through a comprehensive strategy and working together, we have reduced severe maternal morbidity by more than 40%, and by over 48% for our Black patients. During this time, we have participated in the PQCNC Sepsis and Care of the Late Pre-Term Infant initiatives as well as serving as members of the Expert Team for OB Cardiac Care," said Heather Talley MSN, CPPS, RNC-OB, C-EFM, CNM, who led many of the efforts. "These quality improvement initiatives work to ensure patient safety, improve clinical outcomes, and enhance the patient and family experience. This work is possible due to the leadership and commitment of the entire Duke Women’s Services team and the partnerships that we have with the NICU, pediatrics, pharmacy, laboratory and so many other support departments.
"Our work with PQCNC has also allowed us to partner in problem solving with other hospitals across the state of NorthCarolina. We have been systematically removing silos both internal and external that impact our ability to provide optimal care. The goal that we have set for our teams is embracing a culture of continuous process improvement that uses our combined strengths to streamline workflows and improve outcomes and they are rising to this challenge! We look forward to continuing this work and serving the families in our community and beyond."
Major perinatal indicators are those indicators endorsed or recognized by national and other quality improvement efforts including the National Quality Forum (NQF), Vermont Oxford Network (VON), Leapfrog, Alliance for Innovation on Maternal Health (AIM), the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). Duke Health was awarded this for all of its progress on the Maternal Sepsis Bundle, Care of the Late Preterm Infant and Maternal Cardiac Team through the collaborative.
PQCNC Team Members:
Jerome J. (Jeff) Federspiel, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology
Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine
Margaret (Maggie) Joines Oakes, MSN, RNC-MNN, CNML
Nurse Manager, Operations
Duke Regional Hospital
4-3 Mother Baby/GYN Services
Melissa Irene Shaw, BSN, RN, IBCLC
Clinical Nurse IV
Duke Regional Hospital
4-1 Mother Baby/GYN Services
Jennifer Junker, BSN, RNC-LRN, CNML
Assistant Nurse Manager
Special Care Nursery
Duke Regional Hospital
Katherine McDuffie MSN, RN, CCRN, CNML
Nurse Manager Operations
Special Care Nursery
Duke Regional Hospital
Heather Talley MSN, CPPS, RNC-OB, C-EFM, CNML
Administrative Director
Quality & Safety, Women’s Services
Duke University Health System
Jacqueline Lawdley, BSN, RN
Nursing Program Manager
Women’s Services
Duke University Health System
Melissa Murray, MSN, RN, CNML
Clinical Operations Director for Women’s Services
Duke University Health System
Dr. Anne Berry, M.D.
Medical Instructor in the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health
Family Medicine - General