Florida hospitals and surgeons launched a significant new initiative to improve patient safety and the quality of surgical care while reducing costs throughout the state. The Florida Surgical Care Initiative (FSCI), a joint initiative of the Florida Hospital Association (FHA) and the American College of Surgeons (ACS) and its Florida chapter, is a unique statewide collaboration that will focus on reducing surgical complications and improving the quality of care in participating hospitals.

The Partnership for Clear Health Communication at the National Patient Safety Foundation announced recipients of the prestigious Pfizer Health Literacy in Advancing Patient Safety Award. Honored for their work in developing and implementing a health literacy tool targeted to the needs of the veteran patient population were Dr. Jolie Haun, from VA Health Services and the Research Center of Excellence, and Patricia Donaldson, RN, from Veteran’s Health System, Malcolm Randall VAMC.