CMS has announced the extension of the data submission deadline for the first reporting period of the Pain Assessment and Follow-Up Reporting Measure, in CROWNWeb, from July 31, 2017 to August 31, 2017 at 11:59 PM ET in support of the ESRD Quality Incentive Program (QIP) Payment Year (PY) 2019.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the ESRD QIP team at mailto:esrdqip@cms.hhs.govv.
The PY 2018 Preview Period is scheduled to end on August 18, 2017, at 11:59 PM Pacific Time. The Preview Period provides each facility the opportunity to review and ask questions about its ESRD QIP scores and any potential payment reductions.
During the Preview Period, facility points of contact (POC) may use the ESRD QIP system to ask clarification questions and systemic clarification questions, as well as submit a single formal inquiry in the event that the facility believes its scores were not calculated correctly. Please note that only the Preview Patient List Reports (PLR) can be run during the Preview Period. The Final PLRs will be populated once scores have been finalized.
If you have questions or concerns regarding the use of the ESRD QIP system, please contact the QualityNet Help Desk at qnetsupport-esrd@hcqis.orgor (866) 288-8912 (7:00 AM to 7:00 PM Central Time from Monday through Friday). If you have any questions or concerns regarding the program, please contact the ESRD QIP team at esrdqip@cms.hhs.gov.
The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) has created a free video training module, Helping Entities Implement Privacy and Security Protections, for healthcare providers on patients’ right of access under the HIPAA Privacy Rule. The video provides an in-depth review of the components of the HIPAA right of access and ways in which it enables individuals to be more involved in their own care. It also provides helpful suggestions about how healthcare providers can integrate aspects of the HIPAA access into medical practice. Continuing medical education (CME) credit for physicians and continuing education (CE) credit for healthcare professionals are available.
HIPAA Video Training: https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/for-professionals/training/index.html
HIPAA Resources: https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/index.html
Over the past 20 years, health care as a whole has been moving toward the patient-centered care-end of the spectrum. What’s the next step? Care that is truly delivered by patients themselves.” In the dialysis unit, staff members can promote patient self-management techniques, from hand washing to self-cannulation and self-management. A recent Harvard Business Review article, The Value of Teaching Patients to Administer Their Own Care, includes an example of a self-care dialysis program at the Central Texas Nephrology Associates (CTNA) clinic in Waco, Texas. Below are a few excerpts from the article, and links to videos and additional information on the Institute for Healthcare Improvement’s website, http://www.ihi.org.
Regardless of the setting, a successful approach to patient-administered self-care requires the following :
One of the Network’s priorities is to support facility staff in ensuring that patients receive appropriate vaccinations.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) provides vaccination recommendations for ESRD patients in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report(MMWR); two of the recommended vaccines (pneumococcal pneumonia and hepatitis B) are a focus of one of the Network’s quality improvement activities.
According to the CDC, approximately 18,000 patients die each year from pneumococcal disease, and treatment with antibiotics is becoming less effective, due to drug resistant bacteria. Hepatitis B is a serious disease that affects the liver, with 2,000 to 4,000 patients dying from cirrhosis or liver cancer each year. Vaccines offer a safe and effective way for individuals to protect themselves from serious illness. Please use the information in the resources below as talking points for conversations with your patients and your staff members regarding the importance and the benefits of vaccinations.
Vaccinations and antibodies are tracked in CROWNWeb, and facility vaccination rates are reported to the Centers of Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
For additional information/resources on National Immunization Awareness Month (NIAM):
For CDC Vaccine Information Statements (VIS):
Did you know that some patients overcome needle fear by training to cannulate themselves? Self-Cannulation: A Patient Right and CMS Expectation for Interested and Trained Patients discusses the CMS Conditions for Coverage, and cites the relevant conditions and interpretive guidelines. The blog post was written by Beth Witten, MSW, ACSW, LSCSW to dispel any concerns that dialysis clinic staff might have about a patient's right to be trained and perform self-cannulation.
KCER has revised the English version of the book Preparing for Emergencies: A Guide for People on Dialysis. Find the new edition at http://www.kcercoalition.com/contentassets/
1080fd75168f4d7e91f0730b6adf7ff8/cms_preparing-for-emergencies_2017update_final_508.pdf.
Have you worked in CROWNWeb lately? If not, don’t miss out on the new End-Stage Quality Report and Systems Facility Dashboard. This dashboard will help your facility track the many important forms that are due to CMS, as well as progress with your data entry. It allows you to view the 2728 forms in three categories: New, Due, and Past due forms. The dashboard also helps facilities track:
Use the EQRS Facility Dashboard to help ensure that your facility is meeting ESRD QIP requirements and achieving compliance with CMS data submission guidelines. Check out the new dashboard to see all the new features!
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced an extension of the deadline for 2017 First Quarter NHSN reporting to Monday, July 31, 2017, at 11:59 p.m. PT. The extension will allow facilities the opportunity to ensure data are complete and accurate in accordance with ESRD QIP reporting policy.
To read the full announcement, please click here.
The current ESRD QIP measure set is not designed to measure the quality of care provided to patients with acute kidney injuries (AKI). CMS will use only ESRD patient data to calculate the NHSN Bloodstream Infection (BSI) clinical measure, NHSN Dialysis Event reporting measure, or any other measure in the ESRD QIP for Payment Year (PY) 2019; AKI patient data will not be included in the calculations.
However, facilities are encouraged to consider reporting AKI patients on a voluntary basis for internal quality improvement efforts and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) public health surveillance purposes. Please use the following guidelines to ensure AKI patient data are excluded from QIP scoring purposes for Calendar Year (CY) 2017 NHSN BSI data.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding the extension, please contact the CMS ESRD QIP team at esrdqip@cms.hhs.gov with “AKI” in the subject line.
If you have questions regarding how to remove patients with AKI from data reported to NHSN, please contact the NHSN helpdesk at NHSN@cdc.gov with “Dialysis” in the subject line.
Do your patients want to re-enter the work force? Do they need vocational training? The Social Security Administration’s Ticket to Work Program can help Social Security beneficiaries go to work while they keep their health coverage. Ticket to Work service providers offer Social Security disability beneficiaries (persons who receive SSI or SSDI), age 18 through 64, who want to work with free job support. Services offered may include job coaching, job counseling, training, benefits counseling and job placement. Additional information and resources to help your patients learn more about the Ticket to Work program and Social Security’s Work Incentives are available below:
Call the Ticket to Work Help Line at 1-866-968-7842/ 866-833-2967 (TTY)
The June 2016 Technical Notes, published on the Dialysis Facility Compare (DFC) website, can help to demystify quality measures (QMs) that impact facility ratings. Nine of the thirteen QMs reported on the Medicare DFC website are used to calculate the Star Rating for facilities, based on the October 2016 release date (Calendar Year 2015 data). Please educate ALL members of your staff about what these measures are and how to speak with patients and family members about their care and what these measures mean to them.
For more information, including the quality measures used in Star Rating calculation, please see: https://dialysisdata.org/sites/default/files/content/Methodology/UpdatedDFCStarRatingMethodology.pdf
When challenged with the task and responsibility of delivering high quality health care, it is also necessary to take an in depth view and analyze causation of grievances, behaviors and issues that result in patients becoming at risk to having no access to dialysis care. This can include involuntary discharge (IVD) or involuntary transfer (IVT) of a patient from a facility. Managing Disruptive Behavior by Patients and Physicians: A Responsibility of the Dialysis Facility Medical Director, published by the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, directly speaks to the challenges and opportunities available that require collaborative efforts to uncover root causes, as well as the effectiveness of leadership at the facility level.
ESRD Networks serve as a resource to both patients and providers for grievance mitigation and conflict resolution. For assistance, please contact your local Network.
