All Care is Brain Care
Neuroprotective Lung Strategies
About this VON QI Collaborative Topic
Respiratory support is often a necessary life-saving measure for critically ill infants, but ventilation-induced lung injury is associated with brain injury.
In this topic group of the All Care is Brain Care collaborative, teams will learn from expert faculty and each other to explore and implement evidence-based potentially better practices through structured quality improvement processes to
- more responsibly establish effective ventilation
- utilize gentle ventilation strategies
- optimize respiratory support in the golden hour and beyond
Is this topic right for your center?
Use these support materials to decide on your improvement topic and make the case for participating in the collaborative.
All Care is Brain Care QI Collaborative
“Neuroprotective Lung Strategies” is a topic area of focus for teams participating in the 2025 All Care is Brain Care collaborative. Participating teams choose a topic most relevant for their center, and then choose a membership level: NICQ or iNICQ.
All teams in either NICQ or iNICQ will benefit from:
- Webinars led by experts in the topic (5-6 per year)
- Interactive toolkits of potentially better practices and evidence-based change ideas
- Recorded webinars and toolkits from other topic areas in All Care is Brain Care
- Quality Improvement Foundations online course for all staff
- CME/CNE for all webinars and courses (including all videos from other topic areas in the collaborative)
- MOC Part 4 credits for physicians (with submission of a poster)
Newborn Improvement Collaborative for Quality
Includes: Small group collaboration and continuous feedback/coaching from colleagues and faculty, dedicated faculty team, additional “homeroom” meetings, in-person meetings (February 2025, Spring 2026, and two days at the Quality Congress in Fall 2026).
To join NICQ or request more information, contact John Lester for more information.
iNICQ: Internet-Based Newborn Improvement Collaborative for Quality
Includes: Virtual collaboration with topical community throughout the year and a 1-day in-person meeting at the 2026 Quality Congress.
Join as a Quality Circle member and participate in iNICQ, or contact Pam Ford, Program Coordinator, for more information.
Faculty
Sheri Carroll, MD
Clinical Translator: Dr. Sheri Carroll is a neonatal perinatal medicine provider at UNC Health Children’s/Novant Health in Wilmington, NC. Dr. Carroll ‘s interest is in quality improvement, and she leads improvement teams at the local, state, and national level.
Erik Jensen, MD, MSCE
Content Lead: Dr. Erik Jensen is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics (Neonatal and Developmental Medicine) at Stanford University and practices at Stanford Medicine Children’s Health. He specializes in neonatal-perinatal medicine with a focus on respiratory diseases and complications in premature infants. His research explores innovative strategies to improve respiratory outcomes, neurodevelopment, and overall care for critically ill newborns. A prolific author and mentor, Dr. Jensen is dedicated to translating cutting-edge research into evidence-based practices that enhance survival and long-term health for vulnerable neonates.
Jan Schriefer, MBA,MSN,DrPH
Quality Leader: Dr. Jan Schriefer is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Pediatric Hospital Medicine at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry. She is the Director of Quality, Safety and Collaborative Partnerships and an Associate Scholar at the University of Rochester Medical Center Quality Institute and the proud mom of a NICU graduate.
Lelis Vernon
Family Leader: Lelis Vernon is a NICU mother of micropreemie twin boys, born in 2003 with TTTS. With nearly two decades of experience, Lelis has collaborated as a faculty family partner with VON across several homerooms. She is an international speaker, a published author and co-author of several peer-reviewed medical papers and clinical guidelines.
VON Award for Excellence in Quality Improvement
The annual VON Award for Excellence in Quality Improvement recognizes VON member teams who demonstrate dedication to our shared core values of quality improvement: measurement, evidence, families, equity, and collaboration.
Teams participating in the All Care is Brain Care collaborative (NICQ/iNICQ) are eligible to apply.
About VON Membership
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