SLV Health’s OB Team Honored with Two SOAR Awards
San Luis Valley Health’s Obstetrics team was recently honored with not one, but two SOAR Awards from the Colorado Perinatal Care Quality Collaborative (CPCQC). They received the Q1 2025 Data Star Award and the Collaboration Award in recognition of their engagement in CPCQC’s programming.
Dr. Carmelo Hernandez, SLV Health’s Chief Medical Officer and practicing OB physician relayed his pride in the OB team, saying, “the award is a demonstration of the focus the birthing center nurses, family practice physicians, nurse midwives, and obstetricians are applying to their care and that they provide to every patient. Our goal is to provide compassionate, quality, safe care for every patient. Our desire is to be your trusted partner in health.”
San Luis Valley Health has been working with CPCQC since the beginning of 2024. This partnership has proven to be beneficial to our OB team and our patients. One of the stated goals of CPCQC is to lower the Nulliparous, Term, Singleton, Vertex (NTSV) Cesarean Birth Rate. Of their SOAR initiative, CPCQC states, “Reducing primary Cesareans is a critical strategy for improving maternal and neonatal outcomes, advancing health equity, and curbing rising healthcare costs. SOAR addresses these challenges by empowering hospitals with the tools and support needed to implement proven clinical and system-level changes.”
San Luis Valley Health’s OB department saw a decrease in the NTSV rate from 2023 to 2024, after participation in the SOAR program. Through our partnership with CPCQC, we have also been able to offer more educational opportunities to our OB nursing staff.
As for the awards themselves, the Data Star award was granted for the timely reporting of primary cesareans, while the Collaboration Award was awarded for the collaboration displayed by our OB team with other hospitals across the state who also participate in the CPCQC SOAR program.