The Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care Institute for Quality Improvement named a health plan executive and a surgery center veteran to its 2015 board of trustees.
The board elected Thomas James III, MD, corporate medical director of health policy at AmeriHealth in Philadelphia and acting chief medical officer of the northern region, to the board. The board also elected Donna Read Norton, RN, MS, an experienced ambulatory surgery center leader, to the board.
Here are five things to know about Dr. James and Ms. Norton:
1. Dr. James oversees the development of AmeriHealth Caritas' clinical policies and serves as chair of the company's corporate medical policy committee.
2. Dr. James was previously the corporate medical direct of National Network Operations at Humana, where he had expertise in quality and efficiency.
3. Ms. Norton served as the administrator of ambulatory surgery centers in four different states: Kansas, Kentucky, North Carolina and Wisconsin.
4. Ms. Norton received her master's of science from the University of Cardinal Stritch in Milwaukee and received quality improvement awards for her expertise in leading surgery centers to meet quality standards.
5. The two new board members joined the 15-member board comprised of individuals with a diverse experience in ambulatory healthcare quality improvement and directs ambulatory health care facility improvement tools, like benchmarking studies and reports as well as patient safety toolkits.