The Ralph G. Brindis Keynote Lecture - The Heart of the Matter: Rescuing and Transforming American Health Care in Troubled Times - 2025 Quality Summit Presentation (Non-CE)-The Ralph G. Brindis Keynote Lecture - The Heart of the Matter: Rescuing and Transforming American Health Care in Troubled Times

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The 2025 Quality Summit opened with a focus on innovation and excellence in cardiovascular care, featuring a diverse, global audience and a record number of e-poster submissions and publications. Keynote speaker Dr. Donald Berwick, joining virtually due to weather, offered a profound reflection on the evolution of healthcare quality, emphasizing a shift from isolated project-based improvements to systemic, collective action addressing broader social determinants of health.<br /><br />Dr. Berwick traced healthcare quality's maturation through phases: initial improvements focused on specific projects like infection reduction; expanded definitions incorporating dimensions such as safety, effectiveness, patient-centeredness, timeliness, efficiency, and equity; and now a third phase recognizing the need for collective societal efforts, including addressing climate change and social inequities as core to health outcomes. He underscored that quality means matching healthcare work directly to patient needs, criticizing profit-driven systems that prioritize "business days" over urgent patient-centered care.<br /><br />The lecture included personal narratives illustrating these themes, highlighting the power of teamwork, transparency, and shared goals in patient recovery. Dr. Berwick also called for healthcare leaders to engage politically, advocating for policies that sustain public health resources and address disparities.<br /><br />During the panel, discussion centered on ACC’s role in advancing equity by setting national goals, linking executive incentives to quality outcomes, and leveraging data to drive community-level health improvements. Concerns about provider burnout were acknowledged, with Dr. Berwick suggesting that collective advocacy and patient-focused care could restore provider efficacy and morale.<br /><br />Overall, the summit emphasized collaboration, data-driven improvement, equity, and political advocacy as essential to transforming cardiovascular care and achieving lasting health system reforms.

Keywords

LAO Registry

Paralon HCA Healthcare

cardiovascular clinical data abstraction

stroke prevention

non-valvular AFib

Watchman device

Lariat device

CHADS-VASc score

informed consent vs shared decision-making

2025 Quality Summit

cardiovascular care

healthcare quality evolution

Dr. Donald Berwick

social determinants of health

healthcare equity

patient-centered care

health system reform

provider burnout

political advocacy in healthcare

data-driven improvement