Quality update - August 2020
by mohsina yusuf
It’s been a busy quarter for the Quality Team, especially during the pandemic. One of the biggest changes is our new Medical Director of Quality, Dr. Melissa Davis, who joined the Radiology Quality Team led by Dr. Marta Heilbrun, our vice chair for quality.
Dr. Davis will be facilitating initiatives within the department that drive improvements in patient care and experience as well as efficiency for our providers and staff. A lot of this entails identifying problems and finding workable solutions that will add value to our department.
She brings a wealth of experience and expertise to Emory Radiology. Prior to this role, Dr. Davis was a section chief for emergency radiology and a medical director of clinical redesign at Yale. As section chief, she helped grow the staff from eight members to 15 and expanded their 24-hour coverage from one sight to three, with planned expansion for a fourth site in July 2020. She helped lead her section become the first to implement an artificial intelligence solution into workflows for the detection of intracranial hemorrhage and cervical spine fractures. They also worked closely with the emergency department to optimize workflows, including an automatic follow-up procedure for incidental findings.
As medical director of clinical redesign, Dr. Davis facilitated projects across Yale New Haven Health with the goal to improve patient outcomes, patient experience, provider experience, and decreasing system cost. She and her team ran projects in 90-day cycles with a team with deep expertise in the opportunity being addressed. Her final project was optimizing workflow for TIA patients in the emergency room, and their workflows demonstrated expedited evaluation of the patients and optimized usage of stroke unit beds.
One of Dr. Davis's personal goals is to meet and get to know as many people in Emory Radiology and Emory Healthcare. For the quality team, she’s setting out to amplify innovation from our faculty and staff and create a long-term strategy for further patient care and provider experience that aligns with our department’s strategic goals.
“I am learning something new every day,” shares Dr. Davis on her experience with Emory so far. “Different health systems use varying tools for improvement and accountability. EmPower was a new concept for me, as well as learning how the daily huddles are structured."
When asked what her favorite thing about the quality team is, Dr. Davis says it’s the team itself. “There are amazing people working on quality at Emory Radiology, and I look forward to working with everyone!”
Dr. Davis will be facilitating initiatives within the department that drive improvements in patient care and experience as well as efficiency for our providers and staff. A lot of this entails identifying problems and finding workable solutions that will add value to our department.
She brings a wealth of experience and expertise to Emory Radiology. Prior to this role, Dr. Davis was a section chief for emergency radiology and a medical director of clinical redesign at Yale. As section chief, she helped grow the staff from eight members to 15 and expanded their 24-hour coverage from one sight to three, with planned expansion for a fourth site in July 2020. She helped lead her section become the first to implement an artificial intelligence solution into workflows for the detection of intracranial hemorrhage and cervical spine fractures. They also worked closely with the emergency department to optimize workflows, including an automatic follow-up procedure for incidental findings.
As medical director of clinical redesign, Dr. Davis facilitated projects across Yale New Haven Health with the goal to improve patient outcomes, patient experience, provider experience, and decreasing system cost. She and her team ran projects in 90-day cycles with a team with deep expertise in the opportunity being addressed. Her final project was optimizing workflow for TIA patients in the emergency room, and their workflows demonstrated expedited evaluation of the patients and optimized usage of stroke unit beds.
One of Dr. Davis's personal goals is to meet and get to know as many people in Emory Radiology and Emory Healthcare. For the quality team, she’s setting out to amplify innovation from our faculty and staff and create a long-term strategy for further patient care and provider experience that aligns with our department’s strategic goals.
“I am learning something new every day,” shares Dr. Davis on her experience with Emory so far. “Different health systems use varying tools for improvement and accountability. EmPower was a new concept for me, as well as learning how the daily huddles are structured."
When asked what her favorite thing about the quality team is, Dr. Davis says it’s the team itself. “There are amazing people working on quality at Emory Radiology, and I look forward to working with everyone!”