Every cardiac surgery program strives to deliver the safest, highest-quality care possible. Some of the most valuable opportunities for improvement occur when healthcare teams review outcomes retrospectively and ask: What can we learn, and how can that knowledge help future patients?
The UT Cardiac Surgery Quality Collaborative (UTCSQC), supported by the UT Health Intelligence Platform (UT-HIP), was created to answer that question through shared learning and collaboration. Bringing together cardiac surgeons, clinical leaders, quality experts, and healthcare professionals from UT Health Houston, UT Southwestern, UTMB, UT Health San Antonio, Memorial Hermann, Dell Medical School, and affiliated partners, the collaborative provides a forum for transparent outcome review and continuous improvement.
The UT-Health Intelligence Platform uses both Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) and Vizient data from the Participating Institutions to create analytics that help better understand performance and identify opportunities for improvement. What makes the collaborative unique is not only the data being reviewed, but also the willingness of organizations to openly share insights and work together toward common goals.
In 2026, the UTCSQC continued to focus on mortality reduction and blood conservation as key opportunities for improvement during its virtual meetings on April 2 and August 18. Throughout the year, participants reviewed outcomes, discussed shared challenges, and exchanged strategies for advancing quality in cardiac surgery. These ongoing conversations reinforced the importance of a multidisciplinary approach to improving outcomes, leading the Collaborative to successfully expand participation to leaders in nursing, anesthesiology, perfusion, and critical care.
A key highlight of the August 18th Summer UTCSQC meeting was a presentation by Dr. Alan Speir, a nationally recognized leader in cardiac surgery quality improvement and collaborative learning. Drawing on his experience with the Virginia Cardiac Services Quality Initiative (VCSQI), Dr. Speir shared insights on building sustainable quality collaboratives, fostering transparency among participating organizations, and using data-driven approaches to improve patient outcomes.
The meeting reinforced the power of collaboration in advancing healthcare quality. By transforming individual experiences into collective knowledge, UTCSQC is helping strengthen cardiac surgery programs across Texas and improve care for the patients they serve.
