The role of Chief Quality Officer (CQO) has emerged across North America and now globally over the last several years. No universal theory or professional development program existed to establish a foundation for the body of knowledge of what a CQO should include or how to lead quality across a complex health system.

Dr. Williams led an IHI Research & Development team to complete a 90-day cycle to research the current state of CQOs and develop a a theory for the role. This research resulted in the development of a curriculum for the first professional development program for current or aspiring CQOs offered by IHI. You can learn more about the program here.

Dr. Williams and his co-lead faculty, Dr. Angela Shippy, vice president and CQO of Memorial Hermann Health System and Dr. Petrina McGrath, executive director, Quality & Safety at Saskatchewan Health Authority, co-authored an article in the American College of Healthcare Executives publication Healthcare Executive on the IHI CQO program’s theory titled Leading Quality Across a System: Five Core Drivers for Effective Chief Quality Officers. You can read the article and see the complete driver diagram here.

Drs. Williams, Shippy, and McGrath will be leading a Spotlight session at the 2018 IHI National Forum on Quality Improvement in Healthcare in Orlando, FL on the topic on Tuesday, December 11, 2018. Learn more here.