PORTLAND, ME – Nineteen New England hospitals have joined a Rapid Adoption Network, a virtual network that will allow them to share information about their clinical practices in an effort to accelerate clinical improvement.

The hospitals will specifically focus on preventing and reducing the incidence of pressure ulcers to less than one year.

"By working together, meeting in real time and virtually, we can share information about how we each perform with other members in the network, enabling us to achieve rapid clinical improvements and provide better care for our patients," said Mary Catherine Rawls, clinical nurse specialist for surgery and surgical specialties at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, N.H.

The RAN is sponsored by VHA Inc., a national healthcare alliance based in Irving, Texas.

VHA has developed a clinical blueprint to help hospitals prevent or reduce the incidence of pressure ulcers. The blueprint, officials say, consists of proven clinical processes that have yielded optimal outcomes at the top hospitals in the VHA network.

"VHA's clinical improvement platform focuses on helping members become leading performers," said Trent Haywood, MD, chief medical officer at VHA. "Our programs and services will help guide members towards success and improve clinical care across the country."