The Health Care Improvement Foundation (HCIF) was incorporated in 1980 as a non-profit corporation under section 501(c)(3) as a controlled affiliate of the Delaware Valley Healthcare Council. It has operated since 2003 as an independent organization whose mission is to make the greater Philadelphia region the safest place in the world to receive healthcare. HCIF has a longstanding history of coordinating discrete region-wide community health activities that assure access to care for vulnerable populations and minority communities. It meets this mission by proactively seeking to identify programs and interventions that mobilize community involvement in achieving region-wide healthcare objectives.
Since its inception, HCIF has been recognized as an outstanding example of the patient safety advances that can be achieved through large-scale, multi-organizational collaboration. During 2004 and 2005, HCIF developed and implemented the Regional Medication Safety Program, a collaborative patient safety effort among 65 local hospitals in the Philadelphia region to reduce medication errors, which resulted in a 22% improvement in meeting the program's safety goals. The Regional Medication Safety Program was cited by JCAHO as one of the top large-scale collaboratives in the country; the tools and educational materials that were developed for the program are now in use in 48 states and eight foreign countries.
HCIF maintains a strong alignment with the Delaware Valley Healthcare Council; the ECRI Institute; Independence Blue Cross; the Institute for Safe Medication Practices; the Hospital & Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania; and other stakeholders in the promotion of quality and patient safety.
HCIF also plays a key role in coordinating the disaster preparedness efforts of the healthcare community in Southeastern Pennsylvania.
HCIF is supported in its mission by contributions from health care providers, the business community, and various foundations.