University of South Florida Tampa General Physicians Becomes First Academic Medical Group in the Nation to Achieve Prestigious Collaborative Just Culture® Program Recognition

Tampa General Hospital (TGH) and USF Health announced this month the University of South Florida Tampa General Physicians (USFTGP) has earned a qualification from global independent certification firm, DNV, for its Collaborative Just Culture Program^®. This achievement marks the first recognition of its kind in the nation for an academic medical group and comes less than one year after Tampa General Hospital became the first academic health system in the nation to receive the prestigious qualification.

“At Tampa General Hospital, we provide exceptional health care. This is impossible to achieve without the highest standards for safety implemented in an environment where team members are both trusted and empowered to play a key role in this effort,” said John Couris, president and CEO of Tampa General Hospital. “This global recognition is a testament to our physicians and their commitment to safety. It’s another third-party confirmation that patients access best-in-class providers with the highest quality standards when they seek care at Tampa General.”

Tampa General is on a path toward becoming a certified Collaborative High Reliability Organization^®, which recognizes organizations across multiple industries that implement best practice standards in reliability for their customers and teams. These organizations empower team members to feel safe in identifying and reporting potential risks before a problem occurs. With USFTGP achieving qualification in Collaborative Just Culture Program^®, the reliability efforts have expanded outside of Tampa General’s inpatient walls and across the growing health system.

“This first-in-the-nation qualification was earned after a rigorous audit of our team, our practices and our outcomes, and it is a tribute to the dedication of our physicians and our team members to the highest standards in health care,” said Dr. Mark Moseley, president of USF Tampa General Physicians, executive vice president at TGH, and professor and vice-dean for clinical affairs at the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine.

The Collaborative Just Culture Program^® fosters a culture of reliability, safety and trust by balancing accountability between individuals and the organization through evidence-based processes, tools and programs. USFTGP began this program in 2023, and now 100% of its team members have completed the training, the first step in the three-tier process to be a certified Collaborative High Reliability Organization^®.

DNV is one of the world’s leading certification bodies operating in more than 100 countries, helping businesses manage risk and ensure the performance of their organizations, products, people, facilities and supply chains through certification, verification, qualification and training services. DNV Health Care evaluates health care systems and providers through a rigorous review process and recognizes those that practice and maintain exceptional standards.

The Collaborative Just Culture Program^® earned by USFTGP serve as evidence of performance and proof of compliance with internationally and recognized best-practice standards. It confirms that Tampa General takes a risk-based approach to patient safety and ensures patients receive the highest quality of care.

“At Tampa General, we have worked together to build a culture of safety and trust. These values are more than protocols, they are deeply rooted in our commitment to high quality health care,” said Dr. Peggy Duggan, executive vice president and chief medical officer at Tampa General.

USFTGP includes 1,400 team members who serve and support physicians employed by USF Health and Tampa General Medical Group, providing practice infrastructure, clinical management, and related operational and administrative support services. USFTGP also works with private practice physicians on staff at Tampa General to offer purchased services and management services.

“We are thrilled USFTGP has joined Tampa General Hospital as they advance toward Collaborative High Reliability certification,” said Scott Griffith, president of SG Collaborative Solutions and author of the Collaborative Just Culture standards. “We expect these evidence-producing standards to set a new high reliability bar in health care and commend the leadership of both organizations.”

The COLLABORATIVE HIGH RELIABILITY^® STANDARDS, including qualification requirements for the Collaborative Just Culture® Program and Reliability Management Team^™ are registered trademarks of SG Collaborative Solutions, LLC (SGCS). SGCS has granted DNV permission to utilize these CHR standards for the purpose of independent, conflict-free verification and audits.