Webinar on Working With Patient Safety Organizations (PSOs): The Value for Hospitals During COVID-19 and Beyond

Summary

This webinar will inform hospital leaders who are not familiar with PSOs about the unique benefits of working with PSOs to improve patient safety and healthcare quality.

The seminar will provide:

• An introduction to the PSO program
• Insights on perceived value of PSOs from participating hospitals
• Examples of how PSOs have helped hospitals during COVID-19
• A demonstration of how PSO participation can save hospitals money and avert adverse events.

Agenda

• Background on the PSO program, insights on hospital participation and perceived value of PSOs before the pandemic from the Office of the Inspector General’s evaluation of the PSO Program, and why hospitals may particularly benefit from working with a PSO now and in the future
  Speaker: Andrea Timashenka, J.D., Director of AHRQ's PSO program
• An overview of how a PSO works, examples of what services a PSO can offer hospitals, and factors for hospitals to consider in choosing a PSO
  Speaker: Terrie Van Buren, R.N., B.S.N., M.B.A., C.P.P.S., Vice President, Patient Safety Officer, CHS PSO, LLC
• A demonstration of how PSO participation impacts hospitals' quality and safety performance over time, including events averted and dollars saved, as well as examples of how one PSO has served hospitals during the COVID-19 epidemic.
  Speaker: Janet Pue, D.P.T., N.C.S., PSO Coordinator of the Carolinas Rehabilitation PSO

Speaker Bios

Andrea Timashenka, J.D.

In November 2019, Ms. Timashenka assumed the role of Director, Patient Safety Organizations Division (PSO) within the Center for Quality Improvement and Patient Safety of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). In this role, she leads a multi-disciplinary team in AHRQ's implementation of the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2005 (PSQIA). This includes directing the Division's efforts in: ensuring that Patient Safety Organizations are in compliance with their statutory and regulatory requirements, developing Common Formats, and maintaining the Network of Patient Safety Databases.

Ms. Timashenka came to AHRQ from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) Office of the General Counsel, where she served as a Senior Attorney in the Public Health Division. In this role, she advised a multitude of programs and offices across the Public Health Service, including the Office of the Surgeon General, and gained expertise in legal matters related to research misconduct, graduate medical education, countermeasures and vaccines, and other public health areas. She additionally provided legal counsel to AHRQ on matters related to the PSQIA.  Prior to joining HHS, she was in private practice, where she focused on veterans benefits law.

Ms. Timashenka earned her B.S., with honors and highest distinction, from Pennsylvania State University and her J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Law School.  

Janet Pue, D.P.T., N.C.S.

Janet Pue is the Director of Rehabilitation Services for Carolinas Rehabilitation and Coordinator for the Carolinas Rehabilitation Patient Safety Organization, commonly referred to as EQUADR. She is a neurologic clinical specialist in physical therapy with focus areas in stroke and brain injury. She received her Doctor of Physical Therapy from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2006 and her neurologic clinical specialist certification in physical therapy in 2013.

She has over 15 years of inpatient rehabilitation experience. Over the years, she has led many process improvement initiatives with a focus on patient safety and other quality metrics. As the EQUADR coordinator, she leads a national, collaborative group of over 40 member organizations through virtual safe table meetings and data assessments to promote patient safety outcomes.

Terrie Van Buren, R.N., B.S.N., M.B.A., C.P.P.S.

Terrie Van Buren is the Vice President, Patient Safety Officer for CHS PSO, LLC (component patient safety organization of CHS/Community Health Systems, Inc). She has over 30 years of experience in patient safety, healthcare operations, quality, and leadership. She began her career as a registered nurse in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. She later worked as a Nurse Consultant in liability claims with Aetna Life and Casualty and Aetna Health Plans.

In the 1990s, Ms. Van Buren served as the Vice President of Medical Services with healthcare consulting firms, Providers Assurance and Strategic Healthcare Innovations. She became the Chief Nursing Officer of Vanderbilt Stallworth Rehabilitation Hospital in 2000. She joined Community Health Systems Professional Services Corporation in 2002 as a Regional Director Quality Improvement and in 2004, was appointed Senior Director Patient Safety Officer and appointed Vice President in 2016.

Van Buren holds both a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the University of Tennessee Center for the Health Sciences and a Master’s in Business Administration from the University of Phoenix. She obtained her Certification for Professionals in Patient Safety in 2012. She lives in Nashville, Tennessee.