Quality Insights Renal Network 4 
A Periodic Newsletter from Quality Insights Renal Network 4 | www.qirn4.org
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QIRN 4 Staff
Executive Director
  
Quality Improvement Director

Jeannette Shrift
Quality Improvement Coordinator
  
Patient Services Coordinator
  
Data Manager
  
Office Manager

Emma Fountain
Administrative Assistant
November 24, 2015 
Greetings from QIRN 4
Welcome to the November 24 edition of the Quality Insights Renal Network 4 (QIRN4) e-newsletter.  In this issue, learn about continuing education opportunities, register for the Dialysis Care Quality Improvement Conference, view QIRN4's winning hand hygiene video and much more. We encourage you to contact us with any questions, concerns or suggestions. 
ESRD QIP: Access PY 2016 Performance Score Report and Certificates Call  
Wednesday, December 9th from 2:30 - 3:30 p.m. ET

Registration Details

This call will focus on how to access a final Payment Year (PY) 2016 Performance Score Report (PSR) and Performance Score Certificates (PSCs). A question and answer session will follow the presentation. Visit the ESRD QIP website for more information.

Agenda:
  • How to access and review your final PSR and PSCs starting in December
  • What the performance score means to your PY 2016 payment rates
  • Where to access ESRD QIP resources and information on facility responsibilities 

The target audience includes dialysis clinics and organizations, nephrologists, hospitals with dialysis units, billers/coders, and quality improvement experts.

 

Continuing education credit may be awarded for participation in certain MLN Connects Calls. Visit the Continuing Education Credit Information webpage to learn more.
PDPH Encourages Facilities to Take Survey
QIRN4 is collaborating with the Philadelphia Department of Public Health (PDPH) on a Bloodstream Infection Prevention Collaborative.

The goal is to strengthen infection prevention practices in dialysis facilities and to reverse the increasing trend in bloodstream infections in hemodialysis patients.

PDPH will support dialysis facilities in their infection prevention efforts by:
  • Promoting infection prevention best practices
  • Educating health care professionals and patients
  • Providing and sharing educational resources and materials, including a resource library on a collaborative website
  • Providing National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) data entry and analysis support
  • Responding to infection control challenges and health condition outbreaks

PDPH requests that all Philadelphia facilities take the Infection Prevention Educational Needs Survey by December 11, 2015. The survey contains 20 questions and should take about 5 minutes to complete. PDPH will use your feedback to guide the development of educational content for its hemodialysis infection prevention initiative.


 For more information, feedback, and how to join the initiative, contact Tiina Peritz at tiina.peritz@phila.gov or (215) 685-6742. 
Don't Forget About Our ICH-CAHPS Reporting Link
Don't forget that QIRN4 has a link on the www.qirn4.org website that allows you to report having conducted the ICH-CAHPS survey. Please fill out the form to report having distributed the ICH CAHPS.
Registration Now Open for Dialysis Care Quality Improvement Conference in January 
The Dialysis Care Quality Improvement Conference will take place this January 25 - 27 in Orlando where senior industry experts from renal care providers will discuss the most pressing challenges and solutions for meeting performance standards in the ESRD QIP. Learn more and register today. 
New NHSN Newsblast Now Available
The latest Newsblast from the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) is now available. Download the Newsblast here. 
Congratulations to the QIRN4 Hand Hygiene Video Contest Winner: DCI - Indiana
The winner of the QIRN4 Hand Hygiene video contest was announced at the annual meeting in October. The winner for this year is DCI-Indiana. Check out their winning submission here. 
Reminder: Dialysis Facility Compare: Submit Your Comments through December 4
Help CMS improve Dialysis Facility Compare. Submit your comments and measure recommendations for the October 2016 release to DialysisData@umich.edu through December 4, 2015.  
Education/CE Opportunities
MARC QIP Webinar Opportunity
The Mid-Atlantic Renal Coalition (MARC) is coordinating a free webinar opportunity. Continuing education credits will be available at a cost. MARC is offering 1.0 credit to nurse, technician, dietitian, and social worker attendees at a rate of $10/person.  Those seeking credit must send in their attendance log, evaluation form, and $10 payment through December 30, 2015.  The log and evaluation form will be emailed to anyone logging into the webinar post-event. Learn more by downloading this flyer. 
Clorox Healthcare Online Course
Clorox Healthcare is offering a free online course called the Fundamentals of UV for Hospital Surface Treatment. Learn about:
  • Data that supports UV-C device efficacy for hospital surface treatment
  • Benefits and limitations of using UV-C devices in healthcare facilities
  • Considerations for UV-C device implementation in a facility
  • Selection criteria for UV-C technology
Cost: Free
Contact Hours: 2.0

Take the Free Course
NKF Opportunity: Getting Ahead of Metabolic & Mineral Disturbances in the Management of CKD-MBD
The National Kidney Foundation (NKF) is offering a free CME/CE On-Demand Webcast titled Getting Ahead of Metabolic and Mineral Disturbances in the Management of CKD-MBD: A Focus on Management Strategies.  

This activity will review the pathophysiology of mineral and bone disorder in chronic kidney disease (CKD-MBD), as well as its relationship to cardiovascular risk and other comorbidities. Current and emerging strategies to proactively manage CKD-MBD will be explored.

Learn more and register today. 
ESRD NCC Free Webinar: Water and Dialysate Safety - A Key Infection Prevention Strategy in Dialysis
The ESRD National Coordinating Center (NCC) is offering a seventh National Healthcare Associated Infections (HAI) Learning and Action Network (LAN) Webinar Event, "Water and Dialysate Safety: A Key Infection Prevention Strategy in Dialysis." The webinar will be held on December 8, 2015 at 4:00 - 5:00 p.m. ET and is available free of charge. Nurses and technicians can receive 1.0 CE.

This webinar event will provide case study reviews of incidents that experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have investigated in which patients were exposed to infectious agents through the water or dialysate system. It will also feature discussions on important prevention strategies concerning the design and maintenance of dialysis facility water and dialysate delivery systems.

Learn more and register. 
New 2016 ESRD QIP Reporting Measures
Beginning January 1, 2016, facilities can begin to report on two new ESRD Quality Incentive Payment (QIP) measures: Pain Assessment and Follow-Up and Clinical Depression Screening and Follow-Up.
  • Facilities will report the Pain Assessment and Follow-Up in CROWNWeb for each qualifying patient once before August 1, 2016 and once before February 1, 2017. This pain measure is based on the National Quality Forum measure #0420 (NQF #0420) of the same name. View the detailed measure specification.
  • Facilities will report the Clinical Depression Screening and Follow-Up measure in CROWNWeb for each qualifying patient once before February 1, 2017. This depression measure is based on the National Quality Forum measure #0418 (NQF #0418) of the same name. View the detailed measure specification.

Learn more about the ESRD Quality Incentive Payment (QIP) program.  Download all of the ESRD QIP PY2018 technical measure specifications. 
NKF Council of Nephrology Social Workers Accepting Applications for Travel Stipends
The National Kidney Foundation (NKF) Council of Nephrology Social Workers will accept applications from regular CNSW members for educational travel stipends of up to $500 to assist in attending the NKF 2016 Spring Clinical Meetings (SCM16). Stipends will be awarded based on the merit and completion of the application form as specified. Persons presenting original research or Abstracts may be given preference. The amount of the award will be determined based on travel distance and a personal statement describing meeting objectives. The completed application form must be submitted online by January 15, 2016, but note that the Abstract submission deadline is December 2, 2015. Learn more. 
NKF News and Updates
Are you a Runner?
Team Kidney is the National Kidney Foundation's new endurance program where you can run, jump ride, swim - anything that makes you sweat- to raise funds to enhance the lives of everyone with or at risk of kidney disease. Whether you participate in honor of someone or you yourself have kidney disease, Team Kidney will be with you every step of your training.

Upcoming Events
Philadelphia Love Run: March 2016 - Philadelphia, PA
Terrorism Preparedness Resources from the KCER
With recent events in Paris, Kidney Community Emergency Reponse (KCER) has developed resources on basic preparedness tips for your use. Download the resources (English/Spanish).   
Getting Prepared for Winter Weather
When a winter storm or the possibility of one is approaching your geographical area: 

Patients: Make sure you stay in communication with your facility for updates and stay current with local news updates via radio, television, the internet or social media. 

Facility Staff: Encourage your patients to stay in communication with the facility for updates and stay current with local news updates via radio, television, the internet or social media.  

Resources
Learn the Signs of Hypothermia
Winter is just around the corner, and it's time to think about cold weather safety; specifically hypothermia. Hypothermia is a dangerous drop in body temperature, usually caused by prolonged exposure to cold temperatures. 

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), hypothermia is particularly dangerous because a person may not know it's happening. Some signs of hypothermia include shivering, exhaustion, and slurred speech.

The CDC offers tips for helping someone who may be experiencing hypothermia, including:
  • Get the victim into a warm room or shelter;
  • If the victim has on any wet clothing, remove it;
  • Warm the center of the body first using an electric blanket, if available; and Get medical attention as soon as possible 
Submit Your Emergency Preparedness Articles
Our focus at QIRN4 is to "Be Disaster Aware, Take Action to Prepare." If you have any disaster preparedness articles or links, please e-mail your information to dknight@nw4.esrd.net so it may be posted in our bi-weekly newsletter. 
ESRD NCC Information Exchange
The ESRD Network Coordinating Center (NCC) provides centralized coordination and support for the Medicare ESRD Network program. Each month, the ESRD NCC distributes an e-newsletter, known as the Information Exchange, that compiles the most important information from numerous ListServs and publications related to renal health. 

To sign up to receive this informative newsletter, please contact the ESRD NCC at ncc@ncc.esrd.net or visit the ESRD NCC Web site. You can also check the QIRN4 website for updates that include material from the Information Exchange.
IMPORTANT NOTE:
This bi-weekly e-newsletter will serve as our primary method of communicating important news and updates. We encourage you to visit our Web site for the most up-to-date information or to contact us with questions, comments or suggestions.
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Quality Insights Renal Network 4
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This material was prepared by Quality Insights Renal Network 4 under contract with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The contents do not necessarily reflect CMS policy. 
Publication No. ESRD4-111315

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