Our Impact
VON members have revolutionized the field of neonatology over the past three decades.
Accelerating the Pace and Magnitude of Improvement in Newborn Care
A culture of quality has transformed neonatology
VON members dedicated to data-driven quality improvement have changed the landscape of neonatal care. NICU teams that collaborate, implement rigorous quality improvement methods, and use data to guide practice provide better care to high-risk infants and their families.
As our worldwide community of practice has grown, VON members have demonstrated remarkable improvements in key outcomes, including infections, necrotizing enterocolitis, severe intraventricular hemorrhage, and severe retinopathy of prematurity.
VON member NICUs have reduced infection rates to meet or exceed the rate set by the best 25% of NICUs in 2005.
Our Members Make Worldwide Improvement Possible
World’s largest voluntary databases for very low birth weight infants and NICU admissions
The breadth and depth of the information on this vulnerable patient population have made possible groundbreaking research and analysis leading to new practices and better outcomes, which means NICU graduates and their families can live better lives.
The most successful VON members continuously partner with families, all clinical disciplines, senior leadership, and other improvement teams to achieve and sustain improved outcomes. Interdisciplinary teams work collaboratively among institutions and in statewide or regional partnerships. Parents are core to quality improvement for newborn care and family advisors are equal participants and faculty in VON programs.
Family advisors are core faculty and equal team members in VON quality improvement and are essential to improving care of infants.
Achieving Measurable and Sustainable Improvement
Data-driven and evidence-based approach to building QI capacity
VON world-class faculty are experts in quality improvement and implementation science who guide and motivate teams to achieve measurable improvement. Participating teams acquire foundational QI skills that can be applied to any challenge they face in the care of infants and families.
VON members use our tools to see trends and rapidly adapt to improve care. Through VON coaching, members learn to use data and research to most effectively drive improvement, and we help teams establish measures and reporting to demonstrate the impact of improvement on finances, outcomes, and the patient and family experience.