Conner to Lead Texas Hospital Association's Center for Quality and Patient Safety

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Amanda Engler
APR, Texas Hospital Association
512/465-1026 

AUSTIN (June 15, 2010) – Therese “Terri” Conner, Ph.D., has been named vice president of the Texas Center for Quality and Patient Safety, an affiliate of the Austin-based Texas Hospital Association. Conner most recently served as the lead clinical director of pharmacoeconomics and pharmacoepidemiology at CIGNA Healthcare.

Conner will provide leadership for the newly formed center, which is part of THA’s nonprofit 501(c)3 foundation. The purpose of the center is to help Texas hospitals implement evidence-based practices to improve patient safety and patient outcomes, which will reduce costs associated with preventable infections and other quality-related metrics. The center’s first project – a statewide hospital collaborative to reduce or eliminate central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI) in hospital intensive care units – is already underway.

“THA is fortunate to have someone with Terri’s impressive clinical and analytic background to lead this new initiative,” said Dan Stultz, M.D., FACP, FACHE, president and chief executive officer of THA. “Health care reform is accelerating the focus on quality and patient outcomes. Through the center, THA is working to provide its member hospitals with tools and information to help them adapt to delivery system changes. Sharing information and providing opportunities for participating in clinical quality improvement activities will help hospitals operate more efficiently while improving patient care and outcomes,” he noted.
 
Conner has a strong background in health care quality and data analysis. At CIGNA she directed a team that was responsible for evaluating outcomes associated with pharmacy programs and services, and was the principal site investigator for multi-collaborative federally funded projects on public safety and surveillance. In addition to independent consulting work, Conner also served as director of the outcomes analysis and research division for Houston-based U.S. Oncology, and was a health economist and senior clinical outcomes consultant for Seton Healthcare Network in Austin. She holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology, as well as a master’s degree and doctor of philosophy degree – both in pharmacy – from The University of Texas at Austin.

-30-

About Texas Hospital Association
Founded in 1930, the Texas Hospital Association is the leadership organization and principal advocate for the state’s hospitals and health care systems. Based in Austin, THA enhances its members’ abilities to improve accessibility, quality and cost-effectiveness of health care for all Texans. One of the largest hospital associations in the country, THA represents more than 85 percent of the state’s acute-care hospitals and health care systems, which employ some 355,000 health care professionals statewide. Learn more at www.tha.org  or follow THA on Twitter at http://twitter.com/texashospitals.

About the Texas Center for Quality and Patient Safety
The Texas Center for Quality and Patient Safety, formed in 2010 as an initiative of the Texas Hospital Association’s 501(c)3 foundation, brings together hospitals, state and national patient safety experts, and evidence-based best practices to improve patient safety and reduce costs by enhancing the quality of care delivered.