Breaking Down Departmental Silos for a Common Purpose

It has been highlighted recently within healthcare and the general public that despite having the most costly system in the world, healthcare throughout the United States consistently underperforms on most performance dimensions relative to other countries.1 Subsequently, volumes have been written about the value of healthcare quality improvement frameworks, such as continuous quality improvement. Many organizations and foundations, such as the Institute of Medicine (IOM), Leapfrog Group, and Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI), have focused their energy and resources on improving healthcare quality. In addition, prestigious awards, such as the Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award, have been offered for 2 decades as a way to encourage quality.