Home > For Health Professionals > Tools & Resources > Legacy Health Partners > News & Updates > December 2025
December 2025
December 2025

Quality Corner: Announcing LHP’s 2025 Quality Award winners!

LHP is pleased to congratulate Metropolitan Pediatrics as the winner of the 2025 LHP Quality Awards and $2,000 prize for their improvement project focused on increasing HIV screening rates in adolescents via rapid point of care testing to support early detection, linkage to care, and prevention.

Legacy Health’s high value care team earned 2nd place and $1,500 for implementing system-level interventions to reduce inappropriate use of Respiratory Quad PCR testing outside of respiratory virus season.

Legacy Medical Group - Westside Internal Medicine earned 3rd place and $1,000 for improving PCP coverage and patient access through rapid communication with patients and clear transition plans during physician departures/retirements.

We are also proud to recognize:
  • Burgess Plastic Surgery for providing timely in-network surgical care for patients with Medicare or Medicaid coverage.
  • Goodskin Dermatology for integrating drug cost transparency tools to help address treatment delays, abandoned prescriptions, and unnecessary flare-related visits.
  • Hillsboro Pediatric Clinic for two quality initiatives: 1) creating a sensory-sensitive environment for pediatric patients and 2) providing Circle of Security Parenting group visits.
  • Legacy Bridge Clinic at Holiday Park for closing the gap between acute psychiatric services and long-term community mental health care.
  • Michele M. Thompson, MD Dermatology for establishing streamlined referral processes and improved access to timely dermatologic care.
Quality improvement requires significant effort, coordination, and dedication across care teams. To show our appreciation, Dr. Chaffin and our teams will be delivering awards and special treats to staff who submitted the top projects and will learn more about their process and results.

“The quality awards are a valuable reflection of the clinical work we do. I appreciate that LHP makes it a priority to recognize innovation in clinical practice. I intend to take elements of the applications and try to implement in my practice.”

- Physician, LHP Quality & Membership Committee


Please join us in celebrating all the people who made these projects possible. You can review a summary of this year’s quality projects below. LHP is committed to sharing learnings across the network and these examples could help your clinic get started implementing something similar!

PROJECT SUMMARIES

Workflows and care delivery

Cost

Access
Metropolitan Pediatrics: Universal HIV Screening for Adolescents

Purpose: Increase HIV screening rates among adolescents to support early detection, linkage to care, and prevention.

Actions:
  • Implemented rapid point-of-care HIV testing during well-child checks.
  • Integrated EMR prompts and standardized workflows for opt-out screening.
  • Provided staff education and training (Oregon AETC).
  • Developed referral pathways for infectious disease and PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis).
Results:
  • Screening rates rose from 3.2% to 53.9% in 3 months.
  • Improved linkage to care and PrEP prescriptions.
  • Reduced stigma and improved patient/provider experience.
Key Lessons/Learnings:
  • Provider barriers (time, training, legal concerns) must be addressed through education.
  • EMR integration and standardized workflows are critical for sustainability.
  • Routine, opt-out screening normalizes HIV prevention and reduces stigma.
  • Ongoing training and data review support continued success.
Legacy Health: Reducing Low-Value Respiratory Testing

Purpose: Reduce inappropriate Respiratory Quad PCR testing outside of respiratory virus season to lower costs and improve resource stewardship.

Actions:
  • Provider education on seasonal testing utility.
  • EMR changes to decouple COVID-only testing from full panels.
  • Stakeholder engagement and price negotiation for tests.
Results:
  • Respiratory Quad test orders dropped by 76% (from 3,000 to 700/month).
  • Over $900,000 in annual savings.
  • Sustainable changes via EMR and ongoing feedback loops.
Key Lessons/Learnings:
  • EMR order panels can shape provider behavior.
  • Testing should be driven by seasonal epidemiologic data.
  • Early stakeholder engagement ensures smoother implementation.
  • Price negotiation can have significant financial impact.
Legacy Medical Group – Westside Internal Medicine: Continuity During Physician Transitions


Purpose: Maintain patient access and continuity during physician departures/retirements.

Actions:
  • Bulk scheduling tickets for affected patients.
  • Proactive communication via MyHealth and mail.
  • Temporary coverage by nurse practitioners.
Results:
  • Improved patient access and satisfaction.
  • Increased MyHealth scheduling by 3%.
  • Reduced staff burden and operational strain.
Key Lessons/Learnings:
  • Scheduling tickets improve access and continuity.
  • Proactive communication alleviates patient uncertainty.
  • The approach is sustainable and adaptable for follow-up scheduling.
Hillsboro Pediatric Clinic: Sensory-Sensitive Environment

Purpose: Create a supportive environment for children with autism and neurodevelopmental conditions.

Actions:
  • Reduced visual stimuli and discomfort sources.
  • Staff routinely ask families about stressors and document needs.
Results:
  • Improved patient experience and engagement.
  • Positive impact on Parental Advisory Group involvement.
Key Lessons/Learnings:
  • Parental Advisory Group involvement fosters inclusion and meaningful change.
  • Sustainable improvements require ongoing adaptation and feedback.
Goodskin Dermatology: Medication Access and Affordability

Purpose: Improve access to specialty dermatology medications by addressing cost and prior authorization barriers.

Actions:
  • Integrated cost-transparency tools and standardized prior authorization workflow.
  • Staff training for consistent process use.
Results:
  • More patients started/adhered to therapy.
  • Reduced flare-related visits and ER utilization.
Key Lessons/Learnings:
  • Routine affordability discussions prevent abandoned treatments.
  • Standardized workflows improve access and continuity.
  • Cross-team collaboration strengthens implementation.
Burgess Plastic Surgery: Insurance Access for Surgical Patients

Purpose: Ensure access to surgical care for patients with Medicare and Medicaid.

Actions:
  • Maintained contracts and credentialing with major insurance plans.
  • Provided timely evaluations and surgeries for breast reduction and reconstruction.
Results:
  • Increased patient satisfaction and timely care.
  • Growth in long-term patient relationships.
  • Reduced patient costs via in-network coverage.
Key Lessons/Learnings:
  • In-network coverage enables timely, affordable care.
  • Building long-term patient relationships enhances satisfaction and practice growth.
Hillsboro Pediatric Clinic: Circle of Security Parenting (COSP)

Purpose: Promote secure parent-child attachments by offering evidence-based parenting support.

Actions:
  • Virtual delivery of Circle of Security Parenting (COSP) to address access barriers.
  • Weekly text reminders to improve attendance.
  • Abbreviated program to increase completion rates.
Results:
  • Improved relational health and parent confidence.
  • Increased program completion and positive feedback.
Key Lessons/Learnings:
  • Virtual and abbreviated programs increase accessibility and completion.
  • Routine follow-up and reminders support engagement.
  • Securing reimbursement is key for sustainability.
Legacy Bridge Clinic at Holiday Park: Transitional Psychiatric Care

Purpose: Bridge the gap between acute psychiatric services and long-term community care for vulnerable adults.

Actions:
  • Multidisciplinary team for rapid follow-up post-discharge.
  • Integrated psychiatry, psychology, social work, and pharmacy.
  • Medication management and care coordination.
Results:
  • Reduced readmissions and emergency visits.
  • Doubled clinic volume and unique patients in 6 months.
Key Lessons/Learnings:
  • Warm handoffs and streamlined referrals prevent treatment gaps.
  • Multidisciplinary collaboration improves access to high-value interventions.
  • Rapid, structured follow-up is highly sustainable and replicable.
Michele M. Thompson, MD Dermatology: Streamlined Access to Dermatologic Care

Purpose: Improve timely access to dermatology by streamlining referrals and scheduling.

Actions:
  • Modified work hours, increased staff, and double-booked for straightforward concerns.
  • Enhanced staff training and community/provider outreach.
Results:
  • Increased daily patient capacity by 33%.
  • Higher patient satisfaction and reduced ER visits.
Key Lessons/Learnings:
  • Template scheduling and adequate support staff are essential.
  • Clear provider communication improves efficiency and satisfaction.
  • The model is easily replicable for other practices.