July 2016
brought to you by the Home Health Quality Improvement (HHQI) National Campaign

 

  CAMPAIGN NEWS
  
July 2016 Agency of the Month
In This Issue
This month, HHQI recognizes Good Samaritan Society Home Health of Sioux Falls, South Dakota for their dedication to improving home health care quality.

Home health agencies that are active in the HHQI National Campaign and closest to the national, risk-adjusted ACH 20th percentile and/or the national, risk-adjusted Oral Medication Improvement 80th percentile (or higher) are eligible for random selection as HHQI Agency of the Month. 

Be in the spotlight. Nominate your agency today, and if you are selected, your organization will be prominently featured here in HHQI Inside Edition - which reaches more than 16,000 subscribers - and on the HHQI website. Your achievement will also be shared via HHQI's social media channels.
Be First to Know with New Topic-Specific Mailing Lists

Now you don't have to wait for HHQI's monthly newsletter to get updates on the latest campaign resources & events. If you'd like to receive succinct emails containing details about new Best Practice Intervention Packages (BPIPs), data reports, webinars, workshops, and online courses as soon as they are available, you can subscribe to HHQI's new topic-specific mailing lists:
  • BPIPs: Be among the first to know when new or updated Best Practice Intervention Packages are available.
  • CardioLAN: Cardiovascular health-related webinars, resources, and information as soon as it is available.
  • Data Access: Information about HHQI data reports and other data-related resources and events as soon as it's available.
  • Educational & Networking Opportunities: Information about upcoming webinars, workshops, and other events as soon as it's available.
  • HHQI University: Information about free online courses and CE credits from HHQI as soon as it's available.
  • UPDate: Quarterly newsletter focusing on Underserved Populations (UP) issues.
HHQI Inside Edition will continue to be distributed as a monthly digest of most recent and upcoming campaign information for those who prefer to receive one longer email per month.

 

  CAMPAIGN RESOURCES
  
Best Practice Intervention Package (BPIP) & Online Course
Fundamentals of Reducing Hospitalizations

HHQI has released a new BPIP focusing on the status of hospitalizations within home health as well as other cross-setting initiatives effecting home health agencies. The Fundamentals of Reducing Hospitalizations BPIP includes categories of key evidence-based interventions for prevention as well as tools and resources to reduce avoidable hospitalizations. Target audience is both leadership and healthcare clinicians. 

The package also includes a short multimedia module Am I At Risk of Being Hospitalized? that helps patients determine if they might be at risk and identify steps to prevent unnecessary hospitalizations. The module is available on YouTube and also offered as downloadable MP4 file on the HHQI website, so you can save them to your laptop or tablet and share them with patients without internet access.

FREE CONTINUING EDUCATION CREDITS FOR NURSES
Nurses can earn 2.25 free continuing education credits* by successfully completing the corresponding Fundamentals of Reducing Hospitalizations course now available in HHQI University's Hospitalizations course catalog. The course is appropriate for leadership and healthcare clinicians.

To be notified as soon as future BPIPs are available, please join our BPIPs mailing list.

*Nursing CEs for this activity have been approved by the American Nurses Credentialing Center's Commission on Accreditation through the Alabama State Nurses Association. 
COMING SOON: New HHQI University Course
Basics of Chronic Disease Management

On August 1, 2016, HHQI will release its Basics of Chronic Disease Management course in HHQI University. This course will be appropriate for healthcare leadership and clinicians and will provide information on evidence-based strategies that can be integrated into daily practice for patients with chronic diseases. The course will look at:
  • Status of chronic disease and purpose of disease management/population health management
  • The Chronic Care Model and how home health and community providers fit perfectly into the model
  • Self-management clinician and communication skills
  • Evidenced-based assessments
  • Stages of Change Model
FREE CONTINUING EDUCATION CREDITS FOR NURSES
This activity has been submitted to the Alabama State Nurses Association for approval to award 1.5 contact hours. The Alabama State Nurses Association is accredited as an approver of continuing nursing education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center's Commission on Accreditation (ANCC).

To be notified as soon as this and future online courses are available, please  join our HHQI University mailing list.

  

  CAMPAIGN EVENTS

  
Save the Dates
"Third Thursdays" Event Schedule
 
Home health professionals are busy. Now, there's an understatement. In order to make the most of your limited time, HHQI's three primary online Networking events -- LiveChat, Cardiovascular Learning & Action Network (CardioLAN) webinars, and Underserved Populations (UP) webinars -- will each be held quarterly. 

Events will rotate to always occur from 2-3pm (ET) on the third Thursday of the month.

JANUARY 21APRIL 21
JULY 21
OCTOBER 20
LiveChats
FEBRUARY 18
MAY 19
AUGUST 18NOVEMBER 17
CardioLAN WebinarsMARCH 17
JUNE 16
SEPTEMBER 15DECEMBER 15

Click on the Networking Event type above for available registration or reminder links. You can also browse our online event calendar or subscribe to our Educational & Networking Opportunities mailing list to receive details (topics, objectives, speaker info, & registration links) as soon as they are available.
Quarterly Underserved Populations (UP) Network Webinar | July 21 | 2-3pm ET
Delivering Culturally Confident Care: A 365 Approach

Please join the HHQI team and guest expert Emeobong Martin, MPH, Project Manager for the Adventist Healthcare Center for Health Equity & Wellness for this free education session appropriate for healthcare leadership. Get more details or register now.

FREE NURSING CONTINUING EDUCATION CREDITS
This activity is pending approval for 1.25 continuing education credits (CEs) by the Alabama State Nurses Association, an accredited approver of the American Nurses Credentialing Center's Commission on Accreditation (ANCC). To receive CE credits, participants must watch the 60-minute webinar and complete an additional 15 minutes of related coursework in HHQI University.

If you would like to be notified as soon as details about future webinars are available, please join our Educational & Networking Opportunities mailing list. You can also subscribe to the UPDate, the quarterly newsletter of the Underserved Populations Network.
WORKSHOP | July 29 | 1-5pm CT | Free CEs for Nurses 
Free Hands-On Data Workshop in Point Clear, Alabama

During this interactive afternoon workshop, RN Project Coordinators from the Home Health Quality Improvement (HHQI) National Campaign team will provide personalized hands-on guidance on data interpretation and the next steps toward developing and sustaining a strong Quality Assurance & Performance Improvement (QAPI) plan.  

Learning Objectives:
  • Interpret your agency's custom Acute Care Hospitalization reports from HHQI & identify gaps in patient care
  • Distinguish 3 or more free evidence-based tools/resources to address gaps in patient care
  • List 3 additional support resources to assist with development and sustainment of a QAPI plan
Free, Open to All Home Care Providers
The free workshop is hosted by the Home Care Association of Alabama, the Homecare Association of Louisiana, and the Mississippi Association for Home Care. However, this workshop is not limited to members of these associations or home health agencies in these states. All are welcome. Registration is required. Visit the HHQI website for more information.

If you would like to be notified of future workshops like this one, please join our Educational & Networking Opportunities and/or Data Access mailing lists. When workshop locations are chosen, we will email the details to subscribers in the region.

  QIN-QIO CORNER
 
August 2: National Learning & Action Network Event

The next installment of the free Sharing Knowledge, Improving Health Care learning series, will be held on on Tuesday, August 2, 2016 from 3:00 - 4:00 pm ET. This event will focus on "Driving Safer Care" by aligning with the CMS Quality Strategy goal to make care safer by reducing harm caused in the delivery of care. Learn how public health safety awareness contributes to ending harm of Antibiotic Resistance. This event is open to beneficiaries, families, providers, practitioners, partners, and Quality Innovation Network-Quality Improvement Organizations (QIN-QIOs). Registration is required.

 

  INDUSTRY NEWS & RESOURCES
  
Current & Upcoming Health-Related Observances

Each month, the healthcare industry puts the spotlight on a variety of health & wellness issues that impact home health patients and professionals. Follow the links below for more information and resources to get involved and help spread awareness. You can also follow HHQI on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn for ongoing related content. Share your favorite photos and free resources & events with our followers too!
JULY 2016
  
Medicare's 51st Anniversary
July 30
AUGUST 2016
Upcoming Webinars & Other Events

DATE & TIME
EVENT NAME
PRESENTED BY
July 7, 2016
2-3pm ET		Discussing CMS' New Interoperability Initiative with ONC's Tom NovakVisiting Nurse Associations of America (VNAA)
July 13, 2016
11am-12pm ET
& 3-4pm ET		The Role of Nurses in Making Pneumococcal Vaccination a Priority in Adult Patients Age 65+Visiting Nurse Associations of America (VNAA)
July 14, 2016
12-1pm ET		Settlement Conference Facilitation Pilot for Home Health AgenciesVisiting Nurse Associations of America (VNAA)
July 28, 2016
1-2pm CT		What is the HHA PEPPER? 
Learn about the Program for Evaluating Payment Patterns Electronic Report: how to get it & how to use it to support auditing & monitoring efforts
TMF� Health Quality Institute
On-demand through 
July 23, 2017		Pharmacotherapy for Adults with Alcohol-Use Disorders in Outpatient Settings: A Monograph*Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality

*Continuing education credit is included or available.
Key Dates: Home Health Compare & Star Ratings Reports

The Quality of Patient Care Star Ratings Preview Reports are now available in the CASPER folders. These reports contain data that will be publicly reported on the Home Health Compare website in July 2016. Below is calendar of key dates for the next two quarters of Home Health Compare updates:
JUL 2016
OCT 2016
Preview reports available in CASPER
4/7/16
(or before)
6/30/16
(or before)
Quality of Patient Care Star Rating suppression request deadline4/25/167/18/16
Deadline for submitting missing or corrected data5/20/168/19/16
Home Health Compare updated
July 2016
October 2016
Geriatric Home Health Resources from CHAMP

Champ logo 

The Collaboration for Homecare Advances in Management and Practice (CHAMP) Program was the first national initiative to advance geriatric home care excellence. CHAMP's valuable resources and e-presentations are still available online.

This material was prepared by Quality Insights, the Medicare Quality Innovation Network-Quality 

Improvement Organization supporting the Home Health Quality Improvement National Campaign, 

under contract with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), an agency of the U.S. 

Department of Health and Human Services. The views presented do not necessarily reflect CMS policy. 

Publication number 11SOW-WV-HH-MMD-070516