Health issues unique to women and differences in healthcare experiences have recently gained attention as health plans and systems seek to extend and improve health promotion and disease prevention in the population. Successful efforts focused on enhancing quality of care will require information from the patient's perspective on how to improve such services to best support women's attempts to lead healthy and productive lives. The National Centers of Excellence in Women's Health program (CoE), sponsored by the Office on Women's Health within the Department of Health and Human Services, is based on an integrated model uniting research, training, healthcare, and community education and outreach. To examine women's concept and definitions of healthcare quality, 18 focus groups comprising 137 women were conducted nationwide on experiences and attributes of healthcare that women value in primary care. Following the focus groups, a woman-focused healthcare satisfaction instrument was developed for the purpose of assessing and improving healthcare delivery. We describe the qualitative results of the focus group study.

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The National Centers of Excellence in Women's Health Program (CoE) represents a new model for women's health in academic health centers that unites women's health research, teaching, clinical care, public education and outreach, and career advancement for women in the health sciences. Lessons learned from the first 3 years of implementation indicate that this type of model requires a transformation from the traditionally fragmented set of activities in academic health centers to an integrated system united around the goal of advancing women's health. The transformation requires institutional commitment, dedicated players, and an ability to build on existing resources and bring added value to the institution. Challenges and strategies to link women's health activities and increase collaboration are also discussed.