CONTACT:
Melissa Hill
Marketing/Communications Director
(405) 302-3211
mhill@ofmq.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Oklahoma Foundation for Medical Quality Adds Wound Care Nurses To Staff
Group is working to reduce occurrence of pressure ulcers in state

Oklahoma City, Ok. (May 2009) – Oklahoma Foundation for Medical Quality (OFMQ) added three wound care specialists to its quality improvement staff in an effort to help the state’s health care providers reduce the occurrence and severity of pressure ulcers, also known as bed sores. In Oklahoma, pressure ulcers impact thousands of lives across all health care settings.

Greg Bridges, RN, MA, CWCN; Nancy Dobbs, M.Ed, RN-BC, CWOCN and Liz Gunter, RN, BSN, ET work in a hands-on consulting role with nursing homes and hospitals throughout the state to develop and apply best practices for the prevention and treatment of pressure ulcers.

“Adding this level of expertise in wound care is critical as we work with our partner nursing homes and hospitals to tackle the problem of pressure ulcers,” said Lisa Wynn MA, BSN, quality improvement program director, for OFMQ. “We find, especially in smaller communities, OFMQ can be a much needed resource for building knowledge about effective prevention and treatment,” she said.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has increased its focus on the prevention and treatment of pressure ulcers across the nation. CMS funds OFMQ, Medicare’s Quality Improvement Organization, to work with health care providers to improve quality of health care and patient safety. OFMQ is currently working in partnership with 72 nursing homes and 43 hospitals in Oklahoma on pressure ulcer prevention and treatment.

“For the first time, we are bringing health care providers from multiple settings together in communities to address pressure ulcers,” Wynn said. “Opening up the dialog across settings of care helps everyone get on the same page to identify barriers and solutions.”

Bridges, an OFMQ employee for five years, has assisted many Oklahoma health facilities successfully implement outcome-based quality improvement methodology. He has an advanced degree in health education, and recently earned a certification in wound care nursing through the Wound Ostomy, Continence Nursing Certification Board (WOCNCB). His experience includes clinical education in the college classroom and in multiple health care settings, including nursing home, hospital and home health care.

Dobbs’ credentials include an advanced degree in education with gerontology emphasis and certifications in gerontology nursing from the American Nurses Credentialing Center and wound, ostomy and continence nursing through the WOCNCB. Prior to joining OFMQ, she cared for ostomy and wound patients, conducted staff education and quality improvement activities in the hospital setting.

Gunter brings specialized experience and knowledge of wound therapy, wound care education and treatment strategies. She has worked as a consultant and teacher with acute care, home health, hospice and long term care facilities in Oklahoma for over 20 years.

OFMQ employs 14 quality improvement specialists, primarily with nursing degrees and experience to work with Oklahoma providers on a variety of health care quality improvement topics in the QIO program.

###