Improving STD Screening Across the Nation
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- Last Updated on Friday, 04 September 2015 20:22
Improving the health of North Carolinians and those across the nation is the central focus of CPHQ. In partnership with the California STD/HIV Prevention Training Center, our team recently began work with clinics in New York and California to improve STD screening. The overall project aim in these two sites is to achieve screening in 80% of health supervision visits for adolescents ages 13-24 by September 2016.
In May, CPHQ worked with four clinics in Buffalo, New York to observe and document their current process for conducting chlamydia screening. Each clinic quickly identified opportunities for improvement and all are currently testing improvement ideas within their clinics.
"The beauty of this process is the bringing together of these clinicians from all aspects of the practice,” said Allison Godwin, Improvement Specialist at NC State University Industrial Extension Service and CPHQ. “They are collaborating, observing to learn, testing new ideas and making an impact.”
One month following the on-site, one clinic team reported that they were able to “catch” at least 3-4 asymptomatic cases of chlamydia as a result of their improvements.
"It is so impactful to go to these clinics, see the need to improve, and be able to help the site create an improvement plan,” said Amanda Cornett, Associate Director of CPHQ. “QI isn’t just a ‘nice to know’ theory. It is truly a set of tools that can move a group to action to ultimately change health outcomes in their community.”
In the fall, CPHQ will work with the Fresno Community Regional Medical Center Ambulatory Care Center in California as well as clinics in Baltimore, Maryland. All clinic sites are required to conduct chart audits to monitor improvement. Stay tuned for updates on their progress!
