2025 Avera Quality Congress Honors Projects and Individuals

Leaders of quality improvement projects and individuals who exemplify Avera's values of hospitality, compassion and stewardship were honored at the Avera Quality Congress on Sept. 16 in Sioux Falls, SD. A total of 84 projects and individuals were nominated. Over 500 Avera employees and special guests attended the conference.

"Avera started Quality Congress in 2002 to honor those people and projects that are improving the quality of care we offer to every patient, each and every day at every Avera facility," said David Basel, MD, Vice President of Clinical Quality and Population Health Officer for Avera Medical Group. The event is held every other year. "Delivering high-quality care at Avera means continuously improving care outcomes, safety of care and enhancing the patient care experience."

Along with three Face of Quality patient stories, the day included a keynote address by John O'Leary, an accomplished speaker, author and podcaster.

Awards were selected by a diverse group of internal and external judges. Awards in each category are as follows:

Avera Caring Spirit - Compassion

• Maria Rivera, Phlebotomist at Avera McKennan Hospital & University Health Center in Sioux Falls, SD

Avera Caring Spirit - Hospitality

• Lindsey Finer, Medical Assistant at Avera St. Luke's Hospital in Aberdeen, SD

Avera Caring Spirit - Stewardship

• Cassie Schaffner, RN Quality Specialist at Avera McKennan in Sioux Falls

Mission Awards

• Avera@Home for the Avera@Home Sioux Falls Hospice Heartbeat Program. This project records a patient's heartbeat and integrates it into a favorite song, creating a meaningful and lasting memento of the loved one's life.
• Sioux Center Health (Sioux Center, IA) for Increasing Appointment Show Rate Among Spanish Speaking Patients. This project launched reminder phone calls with two bilingual team members, increasing the show rate for appointments from an average of around 25% to 93%.

Safety Award

• Avera McKennan for CLABSI Reduction Team. This project developed a team dedicated to reducing or potentially eliminating central line associated blood stream infections to promote patient safety, decrease facility cost, and bring awareness to every unit within the hospital.
• Avera Heart Hospital (Sioux Falls) for the Effect of Careful Process Execution on the Reduction of Blood Culture Contamination in the Emergency Department. This project modified the skin disinfection process from a single-clean process to a double-clean process. This relatively low-cost process change demonstrated a five-fold decrease in blood culture contamination rates.

Excellence Awards

Clinical - Clinic and Outpatient Department

• Avera Medical Group Behavioral Health for Assessment and Brief Intervention Clinic in Psychiatry. This project created an Assessment and Brief Intervention Clinic for confirmation of diagnosis with treatment recommendations for short-term intervention and medication treatment plan, reducing wait times for appointments.
• Pipestone County Medical Center & Family Clinic - Avera (Pipestone, MN) for Access and Adherence to Cervical Cancer Screening. Team members identified and contacted patients eligible for cervical cancer screening to schedule appointments/wellness exams. Their cervical cancer screening rate was improved by 12%.
• Floyd Valley Health Care (Le Mars, IA) for Community Health Coordinator: Responding to Social Driver of Health Needs. This project added a community health coordinator role to address social drivers of health such as access to nutritious food, reliable transportation, quality housing and social connections to impact health and well-being.

Clinical - Hospital

• Avera McKennan for 3 North Ortho-Trauma Unit Nursing Workflow Redesign. This project optimized workflow efficiency and patient care delivery by implementing data-driven, evidence-based improvements in staffing models, standardizing processes and redesigning the physical environment.
• Avera McKennan for Clostridioides Difficile: Reverse Two-Step Algorithm Approach. A reverse two-step testing approach was implemented alongside a standardized algorithm to ensure appropriate ordering.
• Avera St. Luke's Hospital (Aberdeen, SD) for Improving Sepsis Compliance at Avera St. Luke's by Utilizing an Interprofessional Collaborative Approach. This project increased sepsis bundle compliance using innovative educational efforts.

Clinical - Post-Acute

• Avera Specialty Hospital (Sioux Falls) for Early Admission to Inpatient Rehab. This project accelerated the movement of patients in acute beds to inpatient rehab beds, providing the right level of care at the right time.

Clinical - System Collaboration

• Avera McKennan and Avera Health for Targeted Medication Management Dashboard. This project used a database-driven pharmacy solution to proactively identify at-risk patients and address medication-related concerns efficiently in outpatient clinics, reducing adverse events and improving outcomes.
• Avera Health Coordinated Care for Pharmacy Integration in Population Health. This team focused on engagement with a specified high risk population to improve medication adherence, increase utilization of preventive medicines.