Randy Harmatz has been named the chief quality officer for UF&Shands, the UF Academic Health Center.
Formerly the vice president of the quality program at University Hospitals Case Medical Center in Cleveland, Harmatz took over on Aug. 22.
Harmatz will work with Shands HealthCare, the UF College of Medicine, Shands at UF and the UF Physicians medical group to develop and implement the vision and strategy for academic and clinical programs in quality and patient safety.
"Patient safety is at the top of everyone's agenda, and that is what drew me here," Harmatz said.
During her time with the University Hospitals Case Medical Center in Cleveland, its ranking rose from 74th to ninth in the University HealthSystem Consortium, an alliance that represents about 90 percent of the nation's nonprofit academic medical centers.
Dr. David S. Guzick, senior vice president for health affairs and president of the UF&Shands Health System, said that UF&Shands was seeking "top-tier status in quality and safety" among hospitals participating in the consortium.
"I can't personally deliver medical care," Harmatz said, "but I can help build a culture dedicated to improvement and support our caregivers in efforts to provide a safe, high-quality patient experience."
