On Friday, November 15, 2025, we brought together over 180 healthcare stakeholders for our quarterly assembly focused on how we are driving quality improvement and making an impact on health outcomes across our region.  

Attendees gained practical insight into how to harness measurement and data to showcase quality improvement work within their organizations. The program highlighted how to set meaningful quality priorities emphasizing population health, reducing cost, improving patient and provider experience, and centering equity and value in every decision.

Participants shared how to apply data-driven approaches that “measure what matters” for specific communities, ensuring improvement initiatives are both relevant and impactful. Throughout the day, speakers reinforced the vital role WCHQ plays in bringing health systems and partners together to advance collective action and elevate the standard of care across Wisconsin.

Thank you Thank You to Our Speakers

• Gabrielle Rude, PhD, President and CEO, Wisconsin Collaborative for Healthcare Quality
• Vicki Dallmann-Papke, RN, BSN, M.Ed., COHN S, Vice President, Virtual Health and Employer Services, ProHealth Care
• Catherine Way, MD, Family Medicine, ProHealth Care
• Marcos De La Cruz, MD, Director of Pediatrics, Sixteenth Street Community Health Centers
• Jennifer Weiss, MD, MS, Gastroenterologist, UW Health, Professor, University of Wisconsin-Madison
• Bret Pasiuk, MD, FASN, Nephrologist, SSM Health, Fond du Lac Regional Clinic

Thank You to Our Industry Partners

We are grateful to our industry partners for their support in our Wisconsin Healthcare Quality Impact assembly. Their support is instrumental in making these events possible:

Champion Sponsor: Genentech

Visionary Sponsor: Novo Nordisk

Exhibitors:

• Bayer
• Boehringer Ingelheim  
• Dynavex
• Genentech
• GSK
• Merck
• Moderna
• Novo Nordisk
• Pfizer Vaccines
• Sheild

2025 Award Winners

Recognizing Excellence, Innovation, and Leadership in Advancing Healthcare Quality

During the Wisconsin Healthcare Quality Impact Assembly, we presented our WCHQ Annual Awards to four outstanding organizations. This year’s honorees exemplify our mission to drive measurable improvement, foster collaboration, and advance equitable care statewide.

Prairie Clinic received the Quality Leadership Award for significant improvement in colorectal cancer screening rates through provider training, enhancements in patient education, streamlined workflows, and improved shared decision-making. The clinic’s improvements and commitment to collaboration serve as a model for colorectal cancer screening improvement across Wisconsin.

Ascension received the Excellence in Healthcare Award for its statewide leadership in obesity care. The organization built several MBSAQIP-accredited medical-surgical centers focused on monitoring patient outcomes, tracking data, training staff, and improving quality. Ascension also uses EHR-based engagement, telemedicine, remote monitoring, e-consults, and embedded specialists to increase access and enhance experience. These efforts have expanded bariatric services, improved patient satisfaction, and improved outcomes across the region.  

Emplify Health by Gundersen received the Thrive Through Change Award for outstanding improvement in high blood pressure control. A multi-disciplinary team partnered with leadership and staff to standardize processes and improve outcomes through nursing-only visits, automated cuffs, and clinician metrics. As a result, blood pressure control rates rose from 79.6% (Oct 2024) to 84.0% (Jul 2025), impacting an additional 1253 patients, demonstrating effective teamwork and rapid improvement in chronic disease management.

Marshfield Clinic Region of Sanford Health received the Thrive Through Change Award for improving food insecurity by leading a hydroponic farming project with UW-Stevens Point and Fork Farms. The farm on the UWSP Marshfield campus supplies produce to hospitals, improving nutrition access for underserved communities. The initiative promotes sustainability, workforce development, and STEM education, and is designed for replication statewide to advance population health and strengthen local food systems.

These organizations demonstrate the innovation and collaboration that define WCHQ’s statewide mission. Their work represents the best of Wisconsin healthcare: data-driven, patient-centered, and committed to meaningful, measurable change.

Gabrielle Rude, PhD & Hillary Timm

Gabrielle Rude, PhD, Kim Hardy, MD, Wanda Peters, and Chas Kiefer

Gabrielle Rude, PhD & Chintan Desai, MD

Gabrielle Rude, PhD & Jay Shrader