| 1. | Why did the Foundation decide to pursue nursing as a major initiative? |
| Concerned by several studies pointing to the need to improve patient safety in acute care hospitals and by the serious shortage of RNs, we identified quality of nursing-related patient care in hospitals as a priority area for funding. We believe this Initiative can affect a measurable, significant, and long-term improvement in the quality of patient care in these regions. |
| 2. | What does the Foundation hope to achieve? |
| The goal of the Nursing Initiative is to improve the quality of nursing care in acute care hospitals. |
| 3. | How will you measure the success? |
| The success of the Nursing Initiative will be measured by changes over time in nursing-related patient outcomes in adult acute care hospitals in the San Francisco Bay Area and Greater Sacramento. More specifically, success will be determined primarily by measuring changes in preventable complications that can be influenced through the nursing workforce as well as in other indicators, such as the number of new RN graduates and patient satisfaction. |
| 4. | Why have you limited this initiative to the San Francisco Bay Area and Greater Sacramento? |
| Two considerations led to this decision. First, Gordon and Betty Moore—as residents of Northern California for more than 70 years—identified these areas as a priority for the Foundation's grantmaking. Second, the Foundation believes in focused efforts to drive measurable changes. Due to the complexities in the U.S. healthcare system, the Foundation decided that significant impact on patient outcomes would be best achieved through a targeted geographic approach: the Initiative is working in five San Francisco Bay Area counties (Alameda, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara) and five Greater Sacramento counties (Amador, Nevada, Placer, Sacramento and Yolo). Limiting the geographical scope also provides an opportunity to develop model programs that can be disseminated or replicated in other parts of the country. |
| 5. | How was the scope of the Nursing Initiative determined? |
| The Betty Irene Moore Nursing Initiative is approved for $153 million total in funding, for the Bay Area from 2003-2013 and for Greater Sacramento from 2007-2017. Grantmaking activities began in 2004. This funding was deemed necessary to achieve the desired outcomes of increasing the number of nurses and producing measurable improvements in patient care. Some indicators of success (e.g., an increase of graduates from local nursing schools, additional nursing faculty, and identification of best practices) will likely become apparent within four years. However, it will take ten years to realize all the stated goals. |
| 6. | How will the Patient Care Program affect Nursing Initiative grants? |
| There are no changes planned to current Betty Irene Moore Nursing Initiative grants. The Nursing Initiative is a vital part of the Patient Care Program. |
| 7. | When will the Nursing Initiative's work in the San Francisco Bay Area conclude? |
| The Nursing Initiative’s grants in the San Francisco Bay Area will conclude as planned in 2013 with a two-year transition period to fully document the achievements of the Initiative. Other areas of focus within the Bay Area–Land Conservation and Science and Technology Museums–remain unchanged. |
| 8. | What portfolio effect is the Foundation trying to achieve? |
| Within each of our program areas, initiatives drive much of our grantmaking. When we create a series of grants that are linked to increase the effectiveness of the overall initiative, we call that a "portfolio effect." We believe the sum of several grants can positively affect an overall initiative outcome and help to reach our goals while reducing the risk of failure of any one grant. |