Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois has recognized Blessing Hospital with a Blue Distinction® Centers (BDC) for Maternity Care designation, as part of the Blue Distinction Specialty Care program.
To earn the designation, Blessing Hospital’s maternity care team met or exceeded quality selection criteria set by the BDC program. Those designated as Blue Distinction Centers show statistically significant differences in key clinical outcomes compared to their peers and demonstrate better quality and improved outcomes for patients.
In 2020, the Blue Distinction Centers for Maternity Care Program was expanded beyond traditional outcome measures to include assessments of internal quality improvement, data collection and dissemination, and internal protocols that better address clinical quality and equity issues in maternity care.
New in the evaluation cycle, facilities must collect race ethnicity data, have a maternal quality improvement program, commence drills and simulations for adverse events, and have dedicated protocols and procedures for the management of hypertension and hemorrhage. In addition, maternity care providers must meet clinical outcome metrics at a higher standard than required previously. Specifically, the rate for low risk first time cesarean sections has been aligned with the revised national Healthy People 2020 goals.
“Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois is committed to working with providers to help improve the care of mothers and their infant children and is proud to offer this important recognition,” said Derek Robinson, MD, MBA, FACEP, CHCQM, chief medical officer, BCBSIL. “It’s one of the ways we’re partnering with members, employers, providers and communities to help improve health equity.”
“The knowledge and skill required to help a woman deliver their baby is among the most complex in medicine,” said Jamie Kane, nurse manager, Blessed Beginning/Obstetrics. “On behalf of the more than one thousand families who entrust us with their maternity care each year, the Blessing Beginnings care team takes great pride in the outcomes it achieves and is honored to earn this designation, recognizing positive patient outcomes.”
Since 2006, the Blue Distinction Specialty Care program has helped patients find quality specialty care in the areas of bariatric surgery, cancer care, cardiac care, cellular immunotherapy, fertility care, gene therapy, knee and hip replacement, maternity care, spine surgery, substance use treatment and recovery, and transplants, while encouraging healthcare professionals to improve the care they deliver.
In addition to maternity care, Blessing Hospital holds BDC designations for cardiac care, knee and hip replacement and spine surgery.
