Applications are closed for the 2023 program

The AQES is an advanced, certificate of completion, 12-month series quality improvement education course by application only. It’s designed for teams of UPMC clinical and operational leaders with prior quality improvement experience who can marshal support to implement change and are working on a strategically important improvement project. The course is made of up six didactic sessions presented by outside experts and UPMC leaders, as well as collaboration with the project coach and coursework through the Wolff Learning Academy. The goal of the series is that participants will both learn how to implement successful QI projects and become the next generation of quality leaders at UPMC. All projects must be around one of the following system goals:  improving the UPMC patient experience, achieving high quality and patient safety outcomes, driving effective and efficient clinical care, reducing complications/infections (Sepsis, VTE, C. diff, CLABSI, or CAUTI, etc.) or improving the UPMC employee experience.

Please see the guidelines for projects and participants best suited for the program.   Contact Stephanie Knoch at the Wolff Center, with questions or use this link to be added to the 2024 AQES email list.  Please note: the program is highly selective. 

View the 2023 AQES Speaker Series

2023 AQES Session Dates and Topics (Sessions are held virtually from 9:00am-12:00pm unless noted)
February 15, 2023 – Michael Leonard, MD: Organizational Readiness and Making Change Stick (8:00am - 12:00pm)
March 8, 2023 – Denise Rousseau, PhD: Constructing Organizational Support for Improvement 
March 29, 2023 –  Roger Resar, MD: How to Design Reliable Process in Healthcare                          
April 26, 2023 – Ayse Gurses, PhD, MS, MPH and Shawna Perry, MD: Human Factors and Systems Engineering Approach to Improve Patient Safety and Health Care Worker Safety   
May 17, 2023 –  Mark Roberts, MD: Interpreting Data to Advance Quality Improvement   
June 9, 2023 – Laura Damschroder, MS, MPH: Managing and Driving Change Through Implementation Science
February 2024 - Graduation and Project Presentations