American Heart Association learning collaboratives: Bridging the evidence-to-practice gaps

Author's Biography

Kathleen O’Neill , MHA, is a National VP at the American Heart Association, overseeing Quality Improvement Program Implementation in the division of Quality, Outcomes Research and Analytics (QORA). She oversees the Get With The Guidelines Programme, a suite of registries utilised for performance improvement and clinical decision support to enhance cardiovascular guideline compliance and patient outcomes in the acute hospital setting. Over the past 19 years, Kathleen has been the VP of Quality and Systems Improvement for the Midwest as well as Sr. Dir. Quality Improvement overseeing the Chicago market. Kathleen has 30+ years in healthcare, primarily focused on outcomes research, strategic planning, business development and community health. Kathleen holds a BS in community health from the University of Illinois and a master’s in health administration (MHA) from the University of St. Francis. Kathleen is a member of the American College of Healthcare Executives, Health Information & Management Systems Society, National Forum for Latino Healthcare Executives and the National Association for Healthcare Quality. She has co-authored several scientific abstracts and publications presented at national cardiovascular and stroke conferences.

Kathleen Thomas , DHA, MPH, is the Senior Program Development Manager, Health Care for the American Heart Association’s QORA team. As a scholar-practitioner with over a decade of experience in quality improvement, performance excellence and research, she currently focuses on clinical and registry research and translating processes into evidence-based care. Kathie is also an adjunct professor in the College of Graduate Health Studies (CGHS) at A.T. Still University (ATSU). In this capacity, she primarily develops and teaches courses related to quality improvement, performance excellence and data analytics at CGHS’s Doctor in Health Administration (DHA) and Master of Health Administration (MHA) programmes, as well as sits on dissertation committees. Kathie additionally serves on the Michigan Stroke Initiative and the CGHS Chapter Alumni Board.

Michelle Congdon , MBA, CPHQ, is the National Vice President of Implementation Science with the QORA team for the American Heart Association (AHA). She has been with the AHA for 20 years and has been in the healthcare field for over 25 years. In this role, Ms Congdon works with mission-aligned organisations and foundations to improve cardiovascular systems of care and patient outcomes through the use of our Get With The Guidelines suite of registries and other quality programmes. Ms Congdon is a Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality. She has served as a Commissioner of the Healthcare Quality Certification Committee through the National Association of Healthcare Quality and taught graduate courses in Quality Management at DeVry University. Ms Congdon has a BS degree in Social Work, an MBA and is currently working on a doctorate in Health Sciences at A.T. Still University.

Michele M. Bolles , CHES, is the Executive Vice President, QORA at the AHA, the nation’s oldest and largest voluntary organisation devoted to fighting cardiovascular diseases and stroke. The AHA funds innovative research, fights for stronger public health policies and provides lifesaving tools and information to save and improve lives. Michele began her career with AHA 34 years ago, working as an Associate Director in the Southeastern Pennsylvania Affiliate office. In her early career at AHA, Michele was focused on patient support and developed a robust and novel stroke caregiver and patient support programme. Michele has been promoted several times throughout her career with AHA. In 2009, Michele was promoted to a position that gave her direct responsibility for the AHA’s mission-related activities and developing the strategic direction for one of the seven Affiliates of the American Heart Association. During this time, she worked with AHA volunteers to develop the strategic plan for the Affiliate and created two new strategies. She was responsible for creating the first digital strategy plan for the Affiliate that quickly grew its online and digital engagement efforts. The second strategy was overseeing and growing the multicultural programming and diversity portfolio for the Great Rivers Affiliate. Michele’s team executed Mission Lifeline programmes throughout a five-state region to focus on improving systems of care, specifically heart attack and stroke care, where she stewarded the programmatic and funding aspects of these campaigns. Over the last 15 years, Michele has been focused on improving healthcare quality in the inpatient and outpatient settings. The QORA team that Michele leads has a vision to create healthcare ecosystems that ensure equitable care and improved outcomes for all patients. This vision is being achieved through impactful registries and research, clinical trials and implementation studies, certification, quality consultation and innovation and incubation. On a personal level, Michele has developed a special interest in sudden cardiac arrest after losing her father to this condition in 2007. Michele holds a bachelor of science degree in public health from West Chester University in West Chester, PA, and she has earned certifications as a Certified Health Education Specialist and a Master Certified Health Education Specialist from the National Commission for Health Education Credentialing, Inc. Michele resides in Phoenixville, PA.