Byron Joyner, MD, MPA
I am thrilled to announce that Karen Segerson, MD has accepted the position of GME Director of Quality and Safety at the University of Washington Medical Center-Montlake (UWMC-ML). This role represents an exciting opportunity to enhance resident and fellow engagement in hospital quality and safety goals and activities. Dr. Segerson brings twenty years of experience in medical education to this critical area of our institution’s mission. Her work embodies the fundamental concept that we can change and improve our future with effort and optimism.
In this position, Dr. Segerson plans to build upon the solid foundation already in place at UWMC-ML. She is looking forward to collaborating with UWMC-ML leaders, in partnership with GME, to strengthen that hospital’s quality improvement and patient safety initiatives. And, by doing so, she hopes to raise the quality of care in all of the other hospitals.
Dr. Segerson is starting her new role just as UWMC-ML has completed its 4th Clinical Learning Environment Review (CLER) Site Visit. New recommendations from the CLER Executive Report will assist her during the critical review of the report. In the meantime, her immediate plans include familiarizing herself with the leaders of UWMC-ML, such as Dr. Santiago Neme, Medical Director and Adam Parcher, Chief Quality Officer. During the first several months in her new role, Dr. Segerson also plans to conduct a comprehensive assessment of current resident and fellow involvement in quality improvement initiatives with the goal of identifying areas for enhanced engagement. She also intends to work closely with the UW Center for Scholarship in Patient Care, Quality and Safety to incorporate cutting-edge educational approaches to Graduate Medical Education (GME)-level programming. Additionally, as ACGME stresses, she aims to strengthen the connection between GME quality initiatives and institutional priorities, ensuring that our efforts contribute meaningfully to the overall quality improvement goals of our hospitals.
Karen Segerson, MD
Above all, she will strive to focus improvement and innovation efforts on issues that are patient-focused, prioritizing equity in their healthcare needs. In this era of technological change and “big” (but not necessarily inclusive) data, Dr. Segerson believes that we need not only to mitigate harm (including technological harm) but to proactively use technological advances to address to improve quality gaps and health disparities.
Dr. Segerson envisions developing a robust system for sharing best practices in quality improvement across GME programs, connecting residents and fellows to our larger health system. This will involve creating platforms for interdepartmental collaboration and knowledge exchange. To this end, she plans to leverage the advancing knowledge in artificial intelligence (AI) to explore innovative ways of integrating this exciting new technology into our quality improvement processes and educational work. By fostering a culture of continuous improvement and leveraging data-driven approaches, Dr. Segerson believes we can significantly enhance the quality of care provided at UWMC-ML while simultaneously enriching the educational experiences in all of our hospitals.
As we move forward, Dr. Segerson is committed to fostering a culture of safety, improvement, and innovation. She looks forward to meeting members of our housestaff and hopes that they will reach out to her with ideas, questions or opportunities for collaboration. Together, she thinks that we can make significant strides in advancing UW Medicine’s commitment to excellence in medical education and patient care.
Byron Joyner, MD, MPA
Vice Dean for GME and DIO