One often overlooked influence on hospital readmission rates is the degree to which communities have an over-reliance on acute care institutions as sites of care, according to researchers at The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy & Clinical Practice. Researchers find that 49% of variation in 30-day readmission rates for medical hospitalization can be explained by… Continue Reading
Feds See Dramatic Surge in EHR Adoption
While only nine percent of hospitals in the U.S. could demonstrate “meaningful use” of electronic health records (EHRs) in 2008, five years later that figure has jumped to 80 percent, according to the latest information available from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services HHS). The proportion of eligible professionals (mostly physicians) using advanced… Continue Reading
Experts Credit Public Reporting
Nine of the 10 quality measures showing the fastest improvement nationwide are ones that are publicly reported by CMS. That’s a key conclusion of the 10th annual National Healthcare Quality Report, released in May by the U.S. Agency for Health Research & Quality (AHRQ). Eight of these quality measures involve public reporting by hospitals—antibiotics given… Continue Reading
IPRO Achieves Critical Milestone
IPRO has passed a critical 18-month performance evaluation that takes place under the organization’s Quality Improvement Organization (QIO) contract. Each state’s QIO is evaluated by CMS after 18 months (and again after 27 months) of its three-year contract. IPRO’s current QIO contract expires in July, 2014. In an April 18, 2013 letter from Patrick Conway,… Continue Reading
IPRO Co-Sponsors Geriatric Learning
IPRO is co-sponsoring an interdisciplinary educational program aimed at enhancing specialized training in geriatrics and geriatric mental health across the State of New York. With funding from the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration, the Consortium of New York Geriatric Education Centers is supporting a 40-hour certificate program for healthcare professionals as well as a… Continue Reading
Executives Address Annual Meeting
Two leading healthcare executives are featured speakers at IPRO’s 29th Annual Membership Meeting, scheduled for Tuesday, June 4 at the LaGuardia Marriott Hotel in East Elmhurst, Queens. The keynote speaker is Jean D. Moody-Williams, RN, MPP, Director of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS’) Quality Improvement Group, in the Center for Clinical Standards… Continue Reading
Foundation Analyzes Insurer Spending on Quality
Health insurance companies devoted an average of less than one percent of premiums to formal quality improvement (QI) activities in 2011, according to a report issued in March by the New York City-based Commonwealth Fund. The Fund indicates that the industry spent $2.3 billion on QI in 2010—with an average expense of $29 per subscriber…. Continue Reading
Advocates Note Skilled Care Settlement is Retroactive
The recent landmark settlement of a case in federal court in favor of impaired patients seeking Medicare benefits is retroactive to January 18, 2011, according to the Connecticut-based Center for Medicare Advocacy (CMA), the consumer organization that led the class action suit. The settlement of Jimmo v. Sebelius approved January 24, 2013 by a federal… Continue Reading
Specialty Societies Target Questionable Tests
A number of leading medical specialty societies and patient advocacy groups led by Consumer Reports are calling attention to tests and procedures that often aren’t necessary and can actually be harmful. Organized by the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) Foundation, the Choosing Wisely campaign began in April 2012 with nine specialty societies contributing to… Continue Reading
Save the Date for IPRO Annual Meeting
Jean D. Moody-Williams, RN, MPP is a featured speaker at IPRO’s 29th Annual Membership Meeting, to be held Tuesday June 4, 2013 at the LaGuardia Marriott Hotel in East Elmhurst, Queens. Ms. Williams is Director of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ Quality Improvement Group, in the Center for Clinical Standards and Quality, where… Continue Reading