7/18 NW18 Quality Conference

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The HealthInsight ESRD Network 18 Quality Conference 2017 will be held in Los Angeles on July 18, 2017.  Onsite parking, continental breakfast, and lunch are all included in the $25 registration fee.  All Dialysis staff are invited – PCTs, RNs, SWs, dietitians, nephrologists, management, regional staff, support staff, and more will all benefit.  Main Topics include palliative care and advance care planning, violence prevention and de-escalation techniques, Alzheimer’s and dementia, emergency planning and preparedness, infection control, self care, and community resources.  Two CEs will be available to RNs and SWs.  Find full details and register at http://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/event?llr=gfuz7mxab&oeidk=a07ee8xffqt1c2df4c8&oseq= .

9/24 NW Kidney Walk/Run Portland

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On September 24, 2017, NW Kidney Kids will sponsor a benefit 5K, 10K, and Family Run/Walk in Portland.  This first-annual event will celebrate all people impacted by kidney disease and bring together the community to support children living with chronic kidney disease.  You can create your own team to raise donations, join an existing team, register to participate in one of the races or Run/Walk, or simply make a donation, all at https://www.crowdrise.com/strutyourkidney .  If you have questions or want to get involved in the event or organization, contact Race Director Lauren Lynn at lauren@nwkidneykids.org or 541-499-2018.  NW Kidney Kids is the only organization in the Northwest focused on serving children and teens with chronic kidney disease and their families.

NW <6/25 Heat Wave W WA/OR

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Temperatures are currently expected on June 24-25, 2017 to range between 80 and 100°F in Western Washington and Western Oregon from Florence and Eugene north, including the mountains and Columbia Gorge through Hood River.  Networks are required by CMS to track the status of facility operations and patient access to treatment during emergency events.

If the operations of your facility, or ability for patients to have access to dialysis are impacted by emergency events, please let your Network know right away.  Contact Lisa Hall at LHall@nw16.esrd.net or 206-923-0714.  We also ask that you fill out and submit our Disaster Reporting Form, which you can find at https://nwrn.org/files/E/Interruptions.pdf .

Patients and facility staff may find these resources useful:

Self-Care

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A new Harvard Business Review article on “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 clinic in Waco, Texas.  Some excerpts:

  • “In 2016, nearly 40% of CTNA’s 751 patients performed their own dialysis while experiencing fewer hospitalizations and a lower mortality rate than patients receiving dialysis the conventional way.  Patients delivering their own dialysis experienced better outcomes and the health system minimized costs by avoiding unnecessary hospital visits.”
  • The “Providers’ role changed from performing every step of the process to serving as coaches and supporters of patients doing their own care.  The resulting redeployment of staff resources led to higher productivity and throughput for the clinic.”
  • “Regardless of the setting, a successful approach to patient-administered self-care requires the following:
    • “Patients or caregivers must be prepared and willing… Care organizations need to develop a standard process for training patients… Practitioners must be trained to support patient-administered care, …to see themselves as coaches and the patient as an integral partner, …[to] recognize that patients’ capabilities to provide their own care may differ and evolve over time, and …to connect with the patient…
    • “A standard protocol should be developed [including] …methods for distributing equipment, supplies, and medication …how patients and providers should respond to adverse events …easy access to outpatient and inpatient services to address any needs that arise.
    • “A care organization that has [an outcome]-based-payment system will have a much easier time adopting the self-care model …Patient-administered care realizes savings by avoiding spending in the first place; in a fee-for-service model, this is lost revenue.”

Find the article at https://hbr.org/2017/06/the-value-of-teaching-patients-to-administer-their-own-care .

 

QIP/DFC Measures Manual

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CMS has published the 2o17 edition of the CMS ESRD Measures Manual, which details how the PY2017 (CY2017) QIP and October 2017 DFC Star Ratings are calculated.  The Manual includes information on the new Kt/V and NHSN QIP measures, TPS calculation, PY2020, and changes to DFC and Star Rating calculations.  Find a copy of the CMS press release, which includes links to the Manual and supporting material, at  https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/nwrn.org/files/QIP/CMS%2CQIP.061617.pdf .

7/18 NW18 Quality Conference

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The HealthInsight ESRD Network 18 Quality Conferene 2017 will be held in Los Angeles on July 18, 2017.  Onsite parking, continental breakfast, and lunch are all included in the $25 registration fee.  All Dialysis staff are invited – PCTs, RNs, SWs, dietitians, nephrologists, management, regional staff, support staff, and more will all benefit.  Main Topics include palliative care and advance care planning, violence prevention and de-escalation techniques, Alzheimer’s and dementia, emergency planning and preparedness, infection control, self care, and community resources.  Two CEs will be available to RNs and SWs.  Find full details and register at http://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/event?llr=gfuz7mxab&oeidk=a07ee8xffqt1c2df4c8&oseq= .