Northwest Health named to E-QUAL Honor Roll for emergency care

The American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) has named the emergency departments at Northwest Health Physicians’ Specialty Hospital, Northwest Medical Center-Bentonville and Siloam Springs Regional Hospital to its Emergency Quality Network (E-QUAL) 2019 Honor Roll.

All three were recognized for improving outcomes for sepsis patients as well as for reducing opioid harm through safer prescribing and the implementation of evidence-based interventions. They were the only hospitals in Northwest Arkansas to be named to the honor roll. Only 19% of the nation’s participating hospitals earned recognition.

“This achievement is an example of the hard work and dedication our emergency department professionals exhibit on a daily basis,” said Denten Park, CEO for Northwest Health in the Northwest Arkansas market. “We’re extremely proud of our team’s dedication to keeping our patients safe and healthy when receiving care in our hospitals and when those patients return to their communities.”

The 192 emergency departments named to the honor participated in a year-long learning collaborative that includes virtual quality improvement activities and sharing of performance data, according to ACEP.  The emergency departments that participate in E-QUAL are transforming emergency medicine and advancing how care is provided for millions of people, according to  Dr. William Jaquis, president of ACEP.

To date more than 1,800 emergency departments and more than 39,000 emergency medical providers have participated in E-QUAL collaboratives that have resulted in better outcomes and efficiencies including a 23% increase in alternatives to opioid prescriptions and a 35% decrease in opioids administered in the ER as well as 25,000 lives saved from better sepsis care protocol.