The theme of this volume of the newsletter is quality improvement and patient safety. Physician anesthesiologists are well equipped and well positioned to lead healthcare organizations in the pursuit of the Quadruple Aim because of our grounding in patient safety. The Quadruple Aim adds another critical dimension: improving the experience of healthcare personnel while providing care. The Triple Aim is centered on three goals: improving the individual patient experience, improving the health of populations, and lowering the cost of healthcare. The Triple Aim is designed to provide a framework representing value in healthcare. The Quadruple Aim is a term developed by Lucian Leape and colleagues that builds upon the preceding term “Triple Aim”, first described by Don Berwick and colleagues in 2008. These leaders in Virginia, as well as others, continue to inspire physician anesthesiologists’ interest and research in quality improvement and patient safety. I can’t help but think about some of the former physician anesthesiologist leaders in Virginia and their connections to the theme of the current newsletter.įor example, former Chairs of the VCU Department of Anesthesiology, Paul Boyan and Dick Keenan, collaborated on their seminal article in JAMA in 1985 on Cardiac Arrest due to Anesthesia, increasing our awareness of adverse events ultimately resulting in improved patient safety. I couldn’t be more excited for the future of the VSA with this new group of outstanding leaders.

Marie Sankaran Raval and presiding over the election of your new officers, directors, delegates and alternates. At the VSA membership meeting on February 2, I had the pleasure of handing over the gavel to the new VSA President, Dr.

Quadruple aim 2021