September 16, 2016
Hospitals Take the Lead on Quality Improvement
As Maryland's hospitals continue to set the pace for the nation in our collective pursuit of the Triple Aim, it's important to spread the word, frequently and proudly - to the public, regulators, legislators, and others - about how the transformation we are leading is helping patients and communities receive high-quality health care.
 
By sharing these examples, we hope that the public will better understand trends in hospital quality and safety, and that you and your colleagues with have an additional resource for best practices and novel ideas. A new website, www.qualitymattersmaryland.org, is designed to get that job done. The website, which MHA created with input from hospitals' quality leaders, features your stories about changes you've made to improve care through innovation and creativity that make hospital care safer for Marylanders. We'll be sending a press release in the next week or two to announce the site's launch.
 
The website includes state-level data that show how hospitals are improving. For example, hospitals achieved a 33 percent decrease in potentially preventable complications between 2013 and 2015, eliminating 11,700 such complications during that time. The site also provides anecdotal descriptions of the methods that successful hospitals and hospital units have used to drive down infection rates and readmissions, as well as other quality measures.
 
Again with your help, MHA expects to keep the site fresh through regular updates of examples of quality improvement. We'll be soliciting each of your quality teams for submissions, but if you have something you'd like to share, you can send ideas to David Simon at [email protected].
 
I hope you'll visit the website to see how hospitals throughout Maryland are improving quality, and that you'll continue to share your success and the success of your peers throughout your networks. Let's make sure the improvements you make do not go unnoticed, so that Marylanders can be proud of the top-quality health care their hospitals provide.

Commissioners Receive Positive News on Total Cost of Care
At the monthly Health Services Cost Review Commission meeting this week, commissioners received a favorable report on the calendar year 2016 Medicare Total Cost of Care through the month of June. Commissioners also approved Garrett Regional Medical Center's workforce support for disadvantaged areas program, while delaying action on the Baltimore City hospitals' workforce proposal that was presented in draft form at the August meeting. Details are in this month's Newsbreak.
September 30 is Deadline to Submit Cost Report Revisions
Hospitals have until September 30 to submit revisions to their fiscal year 2014 cost report Schedule S-10, which summarizes uncompensated care for the year. While not directly affecting hospitals' Medicare reimbursements, accuracy in these filings is critical to updating the Medicare Disproportionate Share Hospital (DSH) payments nationally, which can affect the Medicare hospital savings and total cost of care spending per beneficiary under the all-payer model. 
Quarterly Financial, Utilization Reports Available
The financial reports for the second quarter of 2016 are now available for MHA members. To access the Accounts Receivable and Combined Financial Trends and Utilization reports, click here. Reports are available only to MHA members.
 
What's Ahead? - Upcoming MHA Meetings Updated
Please note the new link in the blue box to your left (under the Facebook and Twitter logos) for What's Ahead? This listing of upcoming MHA meetings of interest for hospital leaders will be continuously updated and linked from this weekly newsletter.
Registration Open for Case Management Conference
The Maryland Chapter of the American Case Management Association will hold its 14th annual Case Management Conference next month. Registration is still open for the October 1 conference. The Maryland Chapter of ACMA represents case management professionals, registered nurses, social workers, physician advisors, case management assistants, nurse practitioners, care transitions staff, and others who reside or work in Maryland and/or neighboring states without a local chapter. You can find event information on the association's website.
Podcast, Webinar to Examine Cybersecurity
The American Hospital Association will host a members-only webinar on October 5 at 2 p.m. on how best to manage your organization's cybersecurity risk. Ryan Spelman, GSLC, GCCC, senior director at the Center for Internet Security, will provide an overview of the current threat landscape and outline specific steps to improve cybersecurity. Hospitals leaders will come away from the webinar with specific questions they can ask to better understand whether their organization is doing all it can to protect against and respond to cyberattacks. Register here. Already available from AHA is a 15-minute podcast that examines the important role of hospital leadership in cybersecurity risk management and response. By listening to this short dialog featuring Rich Miller, president and CEO of Virtua, a health system located in southern New Jersey, leaders can better understand why cybersecurity is a leadership, not simply a technology, issue and what that means for efforts to address cybersecurity issues. Visit AHA's special cybersecurity web page for other cybersecurity resources, ranging from guides for hospital leadership and trustees to podcasts on emerging threats and effective approaches to risk management and response.
"National" Level Conference in Maryland
 
Sometimes an opportunity is just too good to pass up. Over the past several years, that statement can definitely be applied to the MHEI leadership conference.

Prime Presents Revenue Opportunity
 
The Mainsail Group helps clients find new and significant means of revenue and cost containment. They help hospitals form strategic partnerships with consumer brands in a manner that is supportive of a health system's mission of care.

NIST issues cyber risk management tool; HHS task force seeks input
 
The National Institute of Standards and Technology this week released the Baldrige Cybersecurity Excellence Builder, a draft tool to help organizations assess how effectively they use the NIST Cybersecurity Framework to manage cybersecurity risk. 

THE WEEK AHEAD
Tuesday, September 20
Maryland Healthcare Education Institute Board meeting

Thursday, September 22
Carmela Coyle to present on the all-payer model to the Maryland National Capital
  Homecare Association


Friday, September 23
MHA's PQI Summit: Clinical Leadership to Reduce Avoidable Utilization
TOP NEWS FROM THE WEEK
The Daily Record, By Bryan P. Sears, September 11
 
The Baltimore Sun, By Andrea K. McDaniels, September 9
 
The Baltimore Sun, By Meredith Cohn, September 12
 
Washington Business Journal, By Tina Reed, September 9
 
The Baltimore Sun, By Pamela Wood, September 13
 
The Daily Record, By Bryan P. Sears, September 13
 
The Baltimore Sun, By Andrea K. McDaniels, September 14
 
Herald-Mail Media, By Tamela Baker, September 14