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Reggi Veatch
Senior Communications Manager
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Howard County General Hospital Trustee Receives Quality Award

Columbia, MD, October 23, 2009 – Delmarva Foundation for Medical Care (DFMC) is proud to announce that longtime Board of Trustees member Ann Mech of Howard County General Hospital: A Member of Johns Hopkins Medicine (HCGH), is the 2009 winner of Delmarva’s Trustee “Driving Quality” Award.. The award recognizes the importance of hospital Board leadership and support for initiating and sustaining quality improvement efforts.

“Our hospital and community are very fortunate to have such a knowledgeable individual who gives so freely of her time to enhance the health and safety of our entire community, and we are all very happy that a person as deserving as Ann has won this award” said Victor A. Broccolino, president and CEO.

As chair of the Board’s Professional Committee, Mech’s dedication to performance improvement and knowledge of the health care field helped earn her the award. Her experience as both a nurse and an attorney helps her understand HCGH’s performance data and determine what particular areas contribute to patient safety. Under her leadership, the committee supported a change in laboratory labeling to include bar-code scanning and bedside labeling; a move that led to a dramatic decrease in specimen labeling errors. Additionally, Mech has been a strong advocate of recognizing staff for their contributions and insight regarding patient safety.

A resident of Howard County, Mech also has been involved with a number of other community agencies, such as the Howard County Board of Health and Howard Community College.

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About Delmarva Foundation for Medical Care, Inc
Delmarva Foundation for Medical Care, Inc. (DFMC) is the Quality Improvement Organization (QIO) for Maryland.  DFMC is under contract with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), to improve the quality of health care for Maryland’s 730,000 plus Medicare beneficiaries.  Delmarva provides a range of services, including the development of interventional processes, convening healthcare organizations and stakeholders, fostering the spread of clinical or community practices that improve patient safety and healthcare delivery, and lessening the healthcare disparities that exist in our healthcare system. DFMC has offices located in both Columbia, Maryland and Easton, Maryland.  For more information, visit www.mdqio.org.