A BLUEPRINT FOR EXCELLENCE

Norman Regional has received first-in-the-nation accreditation as a Center of Excellence for Obstetrical Emergency Department

Norman Regional has been accredited by the Center for Improvement in Healthcare Quality (CIHQ) as a Center of Excellence for its Obstetrical Emergency Department (OBED).

“It is with great pride and excitement that we announce this momentous achievement in obstetric emergency prenatal care,” said Richie Splitt, “This certification signifies a significant milestone in Norman Regional’s unending commitment to the provision of exceptional care for all our patients, and in this case our expecting mothers and their babies.

“Our OBED program received the gold standard stamp of approval for our steadfast commitment to the highest standards of care.”

This distinction marks the first time a health system has been recognized for obstetrical emergency care by CIHQ. Norman Regional will now serve as a blueprint across the nation for other health systems hoping to be recognized for their OBED.

“This certification validates the importance of the OBED,” said Dr. Kinde Aguilar, OB Hospitalist Group site director at Norman Regional HealthPlex. “Not only does an OBED provide an extra level of care for patients but it also ensures nurses are practicing within the scope of their practice and private OB partners are supported.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), maternal morbidity and mortality rates in the United States are rising. Oklahoma persistently ranks among the states with the worst rate of maternal death. Norman Regional recognized this problem and began working towards its first national certification in Perinatal Care in 2019.

“A couple of years ago, we went on a journey for our strategic plan that had two prongs to it, the first was bricks and mortar, that was our facilities and our buildings. The second was programmatic and that was around building centers of excellence,” said Brittni McGill, chief nursing officer. “We wanted to do the work to show that we could produce excellent patient care outcomes that met evidence-based quality standards.”

Norman Regional was also the first hospital in Oklahoma with a licensed OBED and remains the only one. The HealthPlex campus houses the OBED, as well as a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and Mother Baby and Labor and Delivery Units.

CIHQ officials spent several days on-site evaluating the OBED with more than 20 elements required to receive designation as a Center of Excellence in Emergency Services, looking at everything from admission to patient care, all the way through to discharge.

“It is obvious that great effort went into this task, and it is wonderful that (Norman Regional is) recognized for it,” said Michelle Shaffer, a representative with CIHQ. “A Center of Excellence designation means that Norman Regional meets evidence-based standards and performance outcomes that reflect high quality and safe patient care.”

“We are very excited and honored to receive this prestigious recognition,” said Annette Troxell, Norman Regional’s director of women and children’s services. “From the beginning, we have strived to ensure that our OB Emergency Services provide excellence in practice and serve as a model program for evidence-based care. We now have the validation that our efforts were successful.”– BSM