February 21, 2008 The George Washington University Hospital has been acknowledged for the first time by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for its leadership role in organ donation. As part of the HHS Organ Donation Breakthrough Collaborative, the Hospital has achieved an organ donation rate of 75%; the national average rate is 60%. This accomplishment comes at a crucial time—the number of people awaiting transplant is higher than ever, and the number of organ donations, while increasing locally and nationally, has not kept pace. At least 18 people die every day waiting for an organ to be donated.
To meet this growing need, HHS launched a campaign in 2004 that combined an education program encouraging Americans to become organ donors with improved efforts in organ recovery. At The George Washington University Hospital, those efforts led to the development of "the team huddle." A team that may include an intensive care physician, the patient's critical care nurse, staff, family advocate(s), social worker(s) and spiritual caregiver gathers for frequent "huddles" to assess and share critical patient and family information. The team is specially trained to recognize critical junctures in a patient's condition. The huddle allows this vital information to be communicated quickly to all involved in the patient's care and to family decision-makers so that the donation wishes of the patient and the spiritual needs of the patient's family are met and carried out.
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Cancer Advertising Campaign – Platinum
April 2008
Richard Davis, GW Hospital’s Chief Financial Officer, was named American Hospital Association’s 2008 Grassroots Champion. The award honors a hospital leader who has effectively educated public officials on major issues affecting the hospital’s vital role in the community. Mr. Davis, who also serves as co-chair of the DC Hospital Association’s Government Relations and Financial Policy Committee, received the award for his role over the years on matters such as the DC Healthcare Alliance and Medicaid management and his dedication to the well being of residents in the District. His work regarding uncompensated care and analysis has proven to be invaluable to healthcare in the District.