2022 CQuIPS Fellowship: Celebrating Dr. Holly Rector and Dr. Jacqueline Follis

May 9, 2022

Not everyone is well-versed when it comes to quality improvement and patient safety (QIPS). This can pose a challenge for those committed to QIPS who are seeking mentorship to advance this important work within their own organizations.

The CQuIPS Improvement Fellowship, launched last year, provides a solution to this: Fellows receive one-on-one mentorship and become part of the Fellowship community, learning from and with one another. They are integrated within the Centre for Quality Improvement and Patient Safety (CQuIPS) team, supporting QIPS activities that are priorities for both CQuIPS and their partner organizations as they further develop their QIPS experience and leadership.

We are excited to share that two WCH nurses have been accepted to the 2022 Fellowship!

headshot of Holly Rector

Holly Rector, DNP, RN-EC is a nurse practitioner in our cardiology clinic and has quality projects evaluating our congestive heart failure clinic and our virtual coronary artery disease clinic. Holly has been selected as a Choosing Wisely Canada (CWC)-CQuIPS Improvement Fellow; in this role, she will be embedded within the national CWC campaign and aligning her initiative with campaign priorities.

headshot of Jacqueline Follis

Jacqueline Follis, MSN, RN is an advanced practice nurse in our professional practice portfolio and as the Lead, Best Practice Spotlight Organization, RNAO she will utilize this opportunity to expand quality improvement capacity for nursing and health disciplines at WCH.

The pursuit of this prestigious Fellowship speaks to the advancement of nursing and health disciplines at WCH. Notably, Holly and Jacquie are among the first three nurses selected to the CQuIPS Improvement Fellowship Program.

More about CQuIPS and the Fellowship

The Centre for Quality Improvement and Patient Safety (CQuIPS), whose purpose is to support and connect those working in QIPS, is a joint partnership between the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Medicine, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, the Hospital for Sick Children (‘SickKids’) and Women’s College Hospital (WCH).

The CQuIPS Fellowship consists of the following core components:

  1. QI project/research: With support from an assigned CQuIPS mentor, Fellows are embedded within a project or initiative that aligns with their interests and priorities at CQuIPS or one of the partner sites. Projects aligned with the CQuIPS priorities of equity and health system resilience are of particular interest.
  2. Monthly Fellowship meetings: Fellows participate in monthly meetings that are a combination of Fellow presentations, expert guest speakers and other formats such as journal club.
  3. Choosing Wisely Canada-CQuIPS Improvement Fellowship: Some Fellowship positions are joint Choosing Wisely Canada (CWC)-CQuIPS Improvement Fellowships. Selected Fellows are embedded within the national Choosing Wisely Canada campaign and align their initiatives with campaign priorities or national implementation activities.
  4. CQuIPS involvement: Fellows are involved in CQuIPS activities in a way that is professionally meaningful and relevant to each Fellow. This could involve teaching in a CQuIPS education program, joining a CQUIPS+ work stream such as the virtual poster committee, becoming a member of a CQuIPS QI program with a community organization, etc.
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