Monthly Archives: January 2018

QIP Q&A Tool

by

CMS has created a web page to answer questions anyone has about the ESRD QIP.  Find the page at https://cms-ocsq.custhelp.com/app/homeesrdqip/p/960 and a training video for it at https://cms-ocsq.custhelp.com/euf/assets/others/ESRD_QIP_QA_Intro.html.  The new page is also introduced on the QualityNet home page at https://www.qualitynet.org/.

CMS will continue using the ESRD QIP Mailbox to receive and process Extraordinary Circumstances Exception (ECE) requests and supporting documents, payment questions, and facility-specific information.  Likewise, facilities should continue to use their accounts on the QualityNet Secure Portal to pose formal inquiries and clarification questions during all preview periods.

Facilities and the public should not use any of these channels to submit Protected Health Information (PHI) or Personally Identifiable Information (PII) to CMS.

2/15+ NWRD Conference Spokane

by

The payment deadline for discounted registration to the 2018 NWRD Annual Conference is February 15, 2018.  The Conference will be held March 8-9, 2018 in Spokane WA.  Register at http://www.nwrdonline.org/registration-2018.  Find the agenda, with includes Native American diets and disparities, disaster relief, vegetarian and vegan diets, transplant, diabetes, home hemo, new medications, EOL, and mentoring, at https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/nwrn.org/files/N/NWRD/NWRD.0318.pdf.

2/2 CDC Webinar: Antibiotic Stewardship

by

CDC will present a free February 2, 2018 webinar on Empowering Nurses to Protect Themselves and Their Patients: Nurses’ Role in Antibiotic Stewardship.  CDC will offer free continuing education for Physicians, Physician Assistants, Nurse Practitioners, Registered Nurses, Health Educators, Epidemiologists, Laboratorians, and Administrators.  Find more information and register at https://cc.readytalk.com/registration/#/?meeting=ujox10nxgwxw&campaign=jnyr3sj66t6a.

NW16 1/26+ W WA Flooding

by

The National Weather Service is anticipating minor flooding and high landslide danger in Western Washington north of Longview, and very high avalanche danger in the Cascades north of US Highway 2, through the end of January.  For details see all four of the special weather statements at http://forecast.weather.gov/showsigwx.php?warnzone=WAZ567&warncounty=WAC057&firewxzone=WAZ658&local_place1=8%20Miles%20E%20Marblemount%20WA&product1=Flood+Watch&lat=48.5364&lon=-121.2752#.Wm6X7YU_eb8

NW18 1/30 CCCC Palliative Care Webinar

by

CCCC will present a January 30, 2018 webinar on Adding Palliative Care Services to Your Hospice License in California as allowed by new California law SB294.  The webinar will be free to members of CCCC and partner organizations.  For details and to register, see https://mailchi.mp/coalitionccc/upcoming-education-opportunities-from-cccc-743973.

1/31 NHSN Deadlines

by

To meet the CMS ESRD QIP NHSN reporting requirements for PY2019, facilities must submit their final third quarter 2017 (July 1 through September 30, 2017) Dialysis Event data by January 31, 2018.  New or revised third quarter data entered into NHSN after January 31 will not be sent to CMS and will not be credited to your QIP scores.

Separately, for BSI monitoring required by Network contracts, your Network asks that facilities enter NHSN data during the month following the events; that is, December 2017 NHSN data should be entered before January 31, 2018.

While you can find everything you need to know about NHSN for dialysis at https://www.cdc.gov/nhsn/dialysis/event/index.html, CDC recommends these shortcuts to making sure your data is finalized for the QIP:

Contact the NHSN Helpdesk at nhsn@cdc.gov using subject line “Dialysis” with any questions.

2/1 CW Training Rescheduled

by

The CROWNWeb training session on Attestation, and the new clinical measures for Ultrafiltration, and Number of Dialysis Sessions, has been rescheduled for February 1, 2018.  Find more information and register at http://mycrownweb.org/pcw_lems/february-1st-attestation-ultrafiltration-and-number-of-dialysis-sessions-training-event/.

DFC January Update

by

CMS has announced that new data on the care quality of dialysis facilities is now available on Dialysis Facility Compare (DFC), the website that allows patients and health centers to view and compare quality data about dialysis facilities.  CMS uses this data, organized into a series of measures, to create a 5-Star Rating system that can help patients make educated decisions about where to get their dialysis treatments, as well as to assist them in speaking with their healthcare team regarding their care.

The January revision has updated information for Standardized Transfusion Ratios, Standardized Mortality Ratios, Standardized Hospitalization Ratios, Standardized Readmission Ratios, vascular access types (fistula and catheter), bloodstream infections, hemoglobin management, and the CAHPS survey on in-center hemodialysis patient experience.  The July 2017 DFC data for dialysis adequacy, hypercalcemia, serum phosphorus, and the facility Star Ratings will remain until the next update.

Find DFC at https://www.medicare.gov/dialysisfacilitycompare/#.

If you’re computer-savvy, you can download supplementary DFC data from https://data.medicare.gov/data/dialysis-facility-compare.