June 14, 2013
Northeast Health Care Quality Foundation is Hiring!
NHCQF Officers and Board
NHCQF OFFICERS AND BOARD MEMBERS ELECTED FOR 2013
The Northeast Health Care Quality Foundation (NHCQF) recently elected Officers for 2013 and Board members for three-year terms beginning at this time. NHCQF is the federally contracted Medicare Quality Improvement Organization (QIO) for the Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont region.
Elected were:
Robert G. Dorf, DO of Nashua, New Hampshire was re-elected Chairman of the Board. Doctor Dorf is the Chief Medical Officer for the Foundation Medical Partners in Nashua with a specialty in Family Practice.
Paul P. Bergeron, MD, CPE of Manchester, New Hampshire was re-elected Vice Chairman of the Board. Doctor Bergeron is a Hospitalist at Catholic Medical Center in Manchester with a specialty in Internal Medicine.
Richard P. Lafleur, MD, FACP of Derry, New Hampshire was re-elected Secretary of the Board. Doctor Lafleur is the Managing Partner/Medical Director of Southern New Hampshire Internal Medicine with a specialty in Internal Medicine.
Lynn Carpenter, MHA, NHA of Concord, New Hampshire was re-elected Treasurer of the Board. Ms. Carpenter is the Administrator of Harris Hill Center, Genesis Health Care, in Concord and represents the New Hampshire Health Care Association.
E. Ross Ramey, MD, FAAFP of Peterborough, New Hampshire will continue as Immediate Past Board Chairman. Doctor Ramey is a Hospitalist at Monadnock Community Hospital in Peterborough with a specialty in Internal Medicine.
The following individuals were re-elected to the Board for the 2012 – 2015 term of office:
Rex G. Carr, MD of Hanover, New Hampshire, a specialist in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.
Peter L. Gosline, FACHE of Peterborough, New Hampshire, President of Monadnock Community Hospital. Mr. Gosline serves on the Board as a representative of the New Hampshire Hospital Association.
Gene Elizabeth Harkless, DNSc, APRN, FNP-BC of Durham, New Hampshire, Associate Professor and Department Chair, Department of Nursing at the University of New Hampshire. Dr. Harkless serves on the Board as a representative of the New Hampshire Nurse Practitioners.
Charles W. White, Jr., MBA, CPHQ of Colebrook, New Hampshire, Chief Administrative Officer of Upper Connecticut Valley Hospital. Mr. White serves on the Board as a representative of the New Hampshire Association for Healthcare Quality.
Newly elected to the Board were:
Don Merit of Burlington, Vermont. Mr. Merit will serve on the Board as a representative of the Vermont Chapter of AARP.
Dana A. Merrithew, MD, FACP of Plymouth, New Hampshire. Doctor Merrithew is a Hospitalist at Speare Memorial Hospital with a specialty in Internal Medicine.
* Please click here for a complete listing and more information on the Board of Directors
Required by the Social Security Act, the mission of QIOs is to improve the effectiveness, efficiency, economy and quality of services delivered to Medicare beneficiaries. The core functions of QIOs are:
- Improving quality of care for beneficiaries;
- Protecting the integrity of the Medicare Trust Fund by ensuring that Medicare pays only for services and goods that are reasonable and necessary and that are provided in the most appropriate setting; and
- Protecting beneficiaries by expeditiously addressing individual patient complaints.
About NHCQF
The Northeast Health Care Quality Foundation (NHCQF) is a non-profit, educational health care organization, headquartered in Dover, New Hampshire.
NHCQF is proud to have been awarded the contracts to continue to serve as the Medicare Quality Improvement Organization (QIO) for Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont region for the QIO 10th Statement of Work which began on August 1, 2011 and ends on July 31, 2014. NHCQF has served as a QIO for New Hampshire and Vermont since 1984 and for Maine since 1996.
Incorporated in 1972 as a professional physician association, NHCQF had as its founding purpose "to advance, promote, develop and institute patterns of the highest quality of care." NHCQF continues to pursue that purpose today through collaborative efforts with a variety of organizations and practitioners in northern New England's health care community.
CMS's First Quality Champion
In December 2009, the CMS named NHCQF the recipient of the "CMS QIO Quality Champion Award for 2009!"
NHCQF was the first QIO to receive this CMS Award. This Award was given "In Recognition of Your Exceptional Performance Results in Improving Health Care Quality for Medicare Beneficiaries". In 2010, the Award was given to the California QIO. CMS did not honor any QIO with this Award in 2011 or 2012.
NHCQF's Board of Directors and Staff feel strongly that this Award is a reflection of not only the work that NHCQF does, but of the organization's positive working relationships with the various stakeholders and providers in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. And most importantly, it is a true reflection of the high quality of care being rendered by providers to Medicare beneficiaries in these three states NHCQF serves.
