Palmer Chiropractic Clinics receive Iowa quality award

May 11, 2011 — The Palmer Chiropractic Clinics, which provide the clinical education for senior-level students of Palmer College of Chiropractic, Davenport, Iowa, were recognized at the Governor’s Recognition of Performance Excellence Celebration luncheon on May 5, 2011, in Des Moines.

During the ceremony, Palmer Vice Chancellor for Clinic Affairs Kurt Wood, DC, was presented the Commitment Award by Iowa Governor Terry Branstad and Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds. Palmer was one of six Iowa organizations to be recognized.

The Iowa Recognition for Performance Excellence (IRPE) program is developed through the Iowa Quality Center (IQC) and aligned with the Baldrige National Quality Program. The IQC has more than 180 member organizations with more than 48,000 individual members representing government, manufacturing, business, education, labor, retail, service, and healthcare organizations.

The IRPE was established in 2000 to help businesses and organizations in the state become more sustainable. Each applicant organization receives more than 1,200 hours of analysis by a team of trained examiners. This process is a proven method for organizations to achieve their highest potential and become more competitive in the world marketplace. The IRPE program presents awards to the organizations that demonstrate successful program-based results.

Palmer’s application through the Iowa Recognition for Performance Excellence program was developed through the coordinated efforts of Clinics Chief of Staff James Owens, DC, and Senior Director of Accreditation and Licensure Jeannette Danner, MS. Palmer also participates throughout the year through the involvement of Director of Community Clinics John Stites, DC, and Danner.

Both serve as application examiners for other organizations that submit application to the Iowa Recognition for Performance Excellence program. Each examiner will average 124 hours of volunteer time each year examining an applicant and completing a site visit.

Recently, the IRPE program was chosen to pilot the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools’ Academic Quality Improvement Program process, whereby institutions of higher education in Iowa can use the state quality award application as an alternative quality initiative process for re-affirmation of regional accreditation.

“Evidencing quality improvement processes in institutions of higher education is a central theme in maintaining regional accreditation and this certainly speaks to the authenticity and rigor of the IRPE process,” said Danner.

“The Iowa Recognition for Performance Excellence process was a unique opportunity to have our clinical education systems and procedures evaluated by criteria that focus on best practices for continuous quality improvement,” said Wood. “While it is an honor to be recognized, the real benefit to the Palmer Chiropractic Clinics is the identification of organizational strengths and improvement opportunities that resulted from the IRPE. This information has already proven to be of value in contributing to our planning processes, and ultimately will allow us to more effectively and efficiently serve our constituencies.”

Source: Palmer College of Chiropractic, www.palmer.edu