Quality and Patient Safety

At Columbia University Irving Medical Center (CUIMC) and its ambulatory ColumbiaDoctors locations, we make a commitment to each patient who comes to us for care: That they will receive the highest quality care in an environment of safety, respect, and support. Every member of our community is personally committed and professionally trained to uphold these standards.

Our Quality and Patient Safety team supports a wide range of initiatives to ensure safe, efficient, and exceptional care for all we serve, including patient education and empowerment, chaperone policies, and medication administration guidelines, among others. Through ongoing investments of resources and talent, the Quality, Safety & Patient Experience Committee, comprised of CUIMC and ColumbiaDoctors leadership, continues to analyze detailed organizational metrics; drive performance improvement using evidenced-based techniques; and develop ways to enhance patient experience year after year.

We established the Center for Patient Safety (CPSS), a multidisciplinary collaboration among Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, Weill Cornell Medicine, and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital designed to develop and test innovative strategies for improving patient safety and health outcomes using rigorous research methods. The CPSS conducts federally funded and hospital-supported research to test solutions that are replicable, scalable, and contribute to important advances in healthcare delivery across the country.

By incorporating best practices from leading organizations such as the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, The Joint Commission, and Press Ganey, ColumbiaDoctors has innovated its techniques to become a leader in quality and safety. For our patients and their loved ones, we welcome each visit and each procedure as an opportunity to honor our promise of quality and safety and to achieve the best possible health outcomes. 

NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center has earned an “A” Hospital Safety Grade from the highly-regarded Leapfrog Group, an independent national watchdog organization that analyzes hospital data on safety and quality.

Concern or Reports

For patients who have a concern about their experience, of any nature, whether it’s a safety concern, a negative experience, or an allegation of sexual misconduct, we provide several avenues for reporting, including by phone (with a secure and regularly-monitored voicemail box); by email; or through an online form (in which reports can be submitted anonymously, if desired). Columbia University has a strict zero-tolerance policy against retaliation.

Our SafetyZone portal allows patients, family members, and all employees to report concerns. By having one platform to capture all this information, the Quality and Patient Safety team is able to track, trend, and respond to submissions. For concerns of a non-sexual nature, the Quality and Patient Safety team reviews all submissions and coordinates assessments and responses to patients with the appropriate doctor’s office or clinical department. 

We created a Sexual Misconduct Allegation Response Team (SMART) to ensure sexual misconduct allegations are thoroughly investigated and with appropriate expertise. We take all allegations seriously and address them with compassion and dignity. When there is an allegation of misconduct, senior leadership ensures a fully informed response, including immediately convening SMART; coordinating closely with a parallel team at NewYork-Presbyterian; conducting a trauma-informed investigations; and taking action on findings from the investigation.