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Quality and Safety

Recognizing the very solemn responsibility that comes with caring for children with spinal problems, Dr. Vitale has a passion to help create the safest possible surgical environment possible, and is a national leader in this space.

Dr. Vitale founded The Safety in Spine Surgery Project (S3P) in 2016 to help improve safety in spine surgery across the nation. This organization hosts the annual Spine Safety Summit which brings spine surgeons from around the world to New York to learn about the latest ways to improve culture, create dedicated teams, and follow best practices to make spine surgery safe. Dr. Vitale has also chaired the Committee on Safety for the Scoliosis Research Society and has held numerous leadership posts in the Committee on Quality Safety and Value of the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America.

Dr. Vitale has published and lectured extensively in this area. In fact, he has literally “written the book” in this space: Safety in Spine Surgery . He has also led the development of best practice guidelines looking at the best ways to avoid spine infection after surgery, ways to optimize neurological safety, ways to avoid wrong site surgery, best practices for the use of halo gravity traction before spine surgery, and has sought to standardize best practices for conservative scoliosis care. As President of the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America, Dr. Vitale launched the Pediatric Safe Surgery Program. More locally, Dr. Vitale is the Vice Chief for Quality, Safety and Strategy for the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, helping to lead these efforts across all areas of Orthopaedic surgery.

Making Care Better Performance Improvement Fellowship 2023–2024

Job Summary: The Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital of New York-Presbyterian (MSCHONY) is seeking a candidate with experience in change management, patient safety, and quality improvement with an interest in pursuing a career in healthcare administration at a top academic medical center.

This fellowship is a specialized health services performance and quality improvement position working with and under the direction of Dr. Michael Vitale, Medical Director of the Pediatric Initiative to Make Care Better/Chief of Pediatric Spine Service and Mary Cassai, Vice President of Perioperative Services.

The fellow will support, facilitate, and coordinate pediatrics-wide quality improvement initiatives and projects, including interdisciplinary work with clinical, research, and administrative staff. It allows for a high degree of autonomy and the opportunity to meaningfully improve culture in an institution that prides itself on reliable delivery of high quality care. The position is designed to support and develop individuals with aspirations for increased responsibility in healthcare management and/or quality and safety. The projects assigned to the individual will allow for exposure to senior leadership.