November 16, 2022

Friends of PQCNC in the news...

For much of his 30-plus-year career, Dr. Russell Suda, an OB/GYN and Cabarrus Health Alliance’s medical director since 2004, didn’t care to treat patients with substance use disorder.

Suda said treatment required too much of one individual and one specialty. But as more pregnant women presented with substance use disorder in his community, he realized he needed to step up and care for them. 

He got certified to prescribe buprenorphine, an FDA-approved medication used to treat opioid use disorder that helps reduce cravings and withdrawal symptoms. Fewer than 2 percent of the 31,000-plus OB/GYNs studied nationwide in 2020 were certified to provide substance use treatment, a significant gap in capacity. 

Suda also started approaching community partners in 2015 that could help address mental health and social determinants of health related to substance use disorder — elements out of his wheelhouse. 

His ability to treat pregnant women with substance use disorder really changed once a team of 12 community partners in Cabarrus County was assembled to help him holistically treat pregnant women with substance use disorder. The Substance Use Network (SUN) Project launched in 2019 and is the first collaboration of its kind in the state.

“Normally, medicine operates in its silos and this is where it stays,” said Gina Hofert, SUN Project manager working at Cabarrus Partnership for Children. “We’re entering kind of a new model where we’re trying to say medicine needs to work in tandem with all the other sectors around our community.”

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clOUDi 3.0 Kickoff - please note!

The PQCNC team is busy with detailed plans for the kickoff and while the morning will be jam-packed with new content and special guests, the afternoon will be reserved for extensive detailed team table time to help your team prepare for the work of the coming year.

It is important to bring as many team members as possible to the kickoff. The day has been designed to give teams the opportunity to learn from the expertise of our guest speakers and apply what you have learned to the development of your team’s quality improvement plan for clOUDi 3.0.

A team will be required to get the most out of the day and to fully participate in the day’s activities.

Less than 2 months to go!

The following need to be completed by December 31, 2022

• Roster - who's on your team for the coming year 
• Snapshot - where you are now in clOUDi work
• Prework - a quick look at where you are with the new components
• Kick-off - January 12, 2023, McKimmon Center Raleigh - register and join with other teams to plan the work of the coming year

More information, links, and forms at the button below

This is the final phase in our innovative effort to transform the care we deliver to those dealing with perinatal substance use - our ongoing partnership with you in clOUDi is essential as we continue the journey to make North Carolina the best place to give birth and be born.

In addition to newsletters and phone calls the PQCNC team is also available to visit in person -  

A PQCNC team visit can help move your facility forward in an initiative by

•  helping with team building and member recruitment
• speaking with staff to promote understanding of initiatives and process change 
•  assisting in brainstorming ideas around data collection and entry
•  engaging hospital administration in the work involved in an initiative
•  reviewing work completed providing feedback
•  observing workflow to aid in full adoption of a process change
•  or anything else you need

Below are dates that we are available to visit your facility - use the button that follows to reserve your date.

• December 7 
• December 15