Author Archives: Tanya Lord, PhD

When tragedy strikes an individual, it is common for the impact to be life altering. Life changed for Tanya Lord, a special education teacher turned stay-at -home mom, when her son, Noah, had a devastating healthcare experience. That fired her desire to improve quality, patient safety, and the patient experience. Tanya returned to school and earned a master of public health degree from the University of New Hampshire and a doctorate in clinical and population health research from the University of Massachusetts Medical School. As a graduate student, Tanya learned improvement science, research methods and worked with many experts. However, there always seemed to be something missing: the voices and experiences of patients. Combining her expertise in quality improvement and a passion for including all healthcare stakeholders, Tanya is now director of patient and family engagement at the Foundation for Healthy Communities in Concord, New Hampshire. Tanya works with all NH hospitals as they partner with patient and families to improve care. She also consults, teaches, and presents nationally as a patient safety, quality improvement, and patient/family engagement consultant. Tanya’s passion, initiated by tragedy, is sustained by hope for a safer healthcare system.

patient experience

Patient Experience Is Not a Silo

by Tanya Lord, PhD • May 4, 2017 • One Comment

On June 14, it will have been 18 years since I last saw the sweet face of my 4-year-old son, Noah. He died from a series of medical errors following a tonsillectomy, four hours after having been discharged from the emergency department (ED). One of the primary causes of his death was the disconnect between […]

2015 JQS Award Nominee

A Journey to Greater Patient and Family Engagement, One Hospital at a Time

by Tanya Lord, PhD • August 13, 2015 • 0 Comments

Patient and family engagement in New Hampshire did not accelerate because of a well-thought out strategic plan, but rather a somewhat casual conversation one morning over tea at a local sandwich shop in Nashua, NH. There, I met for the first time Anne Diefendorf and Greg Vasse from The Foundation for Healthy Communities (FHC) who […]