HPNA member named to NQF Healthcare Professional Stakeholder Council
HPNA member Caitlin Brennan, PhD, APRN, has been selected to serve on the National Quality Forum Healthcare Professional Stakeholder Council in 2024. The National Quality Forum (NQF), of which HPNA is a member, is the only consensus-based healthcare organization in the U.S. and is affiliated with the Joint Commission. The nonprofit organization is dedicated to the development of evidence-based quality measures that are used by governmental bodies and private sector organizations to evaluate healthcare quality and safety.
“I am honored to be selected to serve on the NQF Healthcare Professional Stakeholder Council among a distinguished group of healthcare professionals committed to quality improvement,” Dr. Brennan said.
“I look forward to this opportunity to share my expertise in data analytics, quality measurement, and hospice and palliative care, ensure the success of the NQF’s strategic plan, and collaborate with other national experts on this important work.”
The Healthcare Professional Stakeholder Council, on which Dr. Brennan will serve, is one of five NQF advisory councils that identify and prioritize focus areas to support the NQF strategic plan and provide expertise and guidance regarding their respective stakeholder groups.
Dr. Brennan is an accomplished advanced practice nurse with more than 20 years of experience in oncology, hospice and palliative care, and research. She has contributed greatly to the field, particularly in the areas of workforce, patient safety, and quality improvement in hospice and palliative care, and she has focused her career on using data, research, and measurement to improving systems of care.
“Given Dr. Brennan’s experience as an advanced practice nurse and researcher and her deep understanding of data analytics, quality improvement, safety, efficacy, and palliative care, we are honored to have her represent HPNA on the NQF Healthcare Professional Advisory Council,” said HPNA President Michelle Webb, DNP, RN, CHPCA.
Dr. Brennan currently serves as the Director of Research for CareDimensions, the largest hospice and palliative care organization in Massachusetts, where she leads a team of investigators working with the Dana Farber Cancer Institute on studies to determine the feasibility, safety, and efficacy of palliative interventions in hospice patients. Previously, Dr. Brennan served as vice president of clinical improvement at Cyft, a Massachusetts firm that uses advanced analytics to improve care for the seriously ill. Prior to that, Dr. Brennan served as the director of the safety and quality program in the nursing department at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Clinical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. Dr. Brennan earned her bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in nursing from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, with a master’s specialization in oncology and palliative care, and she completed a postdoctoral fellowship in the Veterans Affairs Quality Scholars program.