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Improving healthcare quality
Medication safety and healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) are two of the largest patient safety issues that healthcare organizations face every day. An estimated 1 in 20 patients – more than 2 million people – are affected by HAIs each year. Medication mistakes injure more than 1.5 million patients each year. And the financial burden is escalating: medication errors cost the healthcare industry more than $3.5 billion annually, while HAIs cost the industry more than $20 billion annually.The Cardinal Health Foundation is investing $4 million in 2009 to reduce HAIs and medication errors throughout the United States, with a particular emphasis on communities where Cardinal Health employees live and work. Specifically, the Cardinal Health Foundation will provide funding to organizations and programs that:
Set national priorities related to healthcare quality
Improving healthcare quality takes collaboration, innovation and a commitment to results. That’s why we pursue partnerships with organizations and programs that identify national healthcare priorities, and then create measurement criteria and standards of care to impact those priorities.
Fund research and education opportunities for healthcare professionals
Continued education is critical to a provider’s ability to create innovative solutions to reduce HAIs and medication errors. In 2009 the Cardinal Health Foundation identified select national conferences, specialized education programs and leadership institutes that provide development opportunities for healthcare leaders, infection control professionals, nurses, pharmacists and physicians. We also fund national research that identifies best practices to make healthcare more effective and efficient. Please watch this site for additional information about the 2010 funding priorities.
We fund national research that identifies best practices for reducing HAIs and medication errors. We also recognize provider excellence by funding key awards.
We fund national research that identifies best practices for reducing HAIs and medication errors. We also recognize provider excellence by funding key awards.
Implement best practices for improving healthcare quality
We help providers at the local and regional level implement best practices for to make healthcare more efficient and effective.
- Patient safety grants: In 2007, Cardinal Health established the Cardinal Health Patient Safety Grant Program, a $1 million charitable grant that annually funds initiatives by healthcare providers to enhance patient safety and quality of care. These highly competitive grants range from $5,000 to $50,000 and are awarded to programs that develop and implement new and innovative best practices for improving medication safety and reducing HAIs.
Applicants should draw on the National Quality Forum's six priority areas.
The deadline for the 2009 cycle has passed. - Grants to develop scaleable healthcare models in Ohio: We’re engaging healthcare systems, hospitals, the corporate community, government and individuals to create infrastructure and scaleable, outcome-based models that reduce healthcare-associated infections and medication errors in Ohio and San Diego – the two areas where we have the most significant number of employees.
Please note that all healthcare quality grants from the Cardinal Health Foundation are by invitation only.
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