The Denver Connection (Porter‐Swedish) experiment revisited

The so‐called Denver connection should be today’s shining example of how to achieve health care quality and safety improvement through lasting evidence‐based collaborations led by health professionals. Instead, this 30 year old experiment is all but forgotten and the story of its demise is a tale of destructive corporate growth. Unfortunately, it bears prescient similarity to problems in health care restructuring today. We should question whether today’s business models, management performance, and accreditation mandates have set the right stage before we venture forth to act again. Unless we ensure a better environment in which to operate, today’s “new” approaches for improving quality and safety may be doomed to the same sad fate.