3/9 World Kidney Day and Nat’l Kidney Month

March is National Kidney Month, and March 9, 2023 is World Kidney Day.

MEI will present two March 9 webinars, one for Patients and one for Dialysis Staff:

• For Patients: How to work well with your dialysis care team, on how to work better with staff, have less conflict, avoid Involuntary Discharge, and get the best care. Find more information and register at https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_4RJjl3xOTpWJce61k_F0pQ.
• For Dialysis Staff: Reframing Difficult Patient Behaviors, on helping dialysis professionals reframe challenging patient behaviors, work more collaboratively with those experiencing kidney failure, and avoid Involuntary Discharge. See https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_EIJtFq3MSceXL7Xcc-Brig for more information and registration.

Find more information about:

• MEI’s monumental work on Kidney Disease at https://mei.org/.
• The World Kidney Day 2023 program at https://www.worldkidneyday.org/2023-campaign/.
• The NIH National Institute of Diabetes, Digestive, and Kidney Disease campaign at https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/community-health-outreach/national-kidney-month.
• The 2023 NKF poster at https://www.kidney.org/content/national-kidney-month.
• ANNA covers both National Kidney Month and World Kidney Day, including a tookit, at https://www.annanurse.org/article/world-kidney-day.
• The World Kidney Day website at https://worldkidneyday.org/.

6/16 KDIGO Anemia Webinar

KDIGO will present a June 16, 2021 webinar on Optimal Anemia Management in CKD: A New Paradigm in Treatment? The webinar draws on discussions and conclusions from the KDIGO Optimal Anemia Management Controversies Conference. For more information and registration see https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/6444240264547585035.

4/22+ Staff Education

Recently announced staff education opportunities:

• April 22, 2021: NIDDK will host a live Facebook event on CKD: Hope through Research, featuring Directors of NIDDK discussing advances in artificial kidneys, and research on genetic causes of CKD. Find details and sign up at https://www.facebook.com/events/727026381297271.

• Weekdays in April and May: The Fresenius Global Medical Information & Education Office frequently repeats their extensive suite of CKD staff education webinars and product training presentations. The sessions are open to all, and CEUs are available. Recent additions include a webinar on Non-Infectious Complications of PD, and a Review of the Liberty Select Cycler. Find the course list, May Calendar, a link to more information, and registration instructions at https://custom.cvent.com/0C5715850B334257947E1386198E9836/files/cc507ac1225e456ba9d837d4a6bfa85d.pdf.

• April 29, 2021: EQRS Town Hall on how to admit, discharge, view, and edit patients, and submit initial 2728 Forms. These are data reporting requirements that have NOT been suspended until further notice (see https://nwrnbulletins.wordpress.com/2021/02/01/eqrs-clinical-data-deadline-suspensions/ for details). Find more information on the Town Hall and register at https://mycrownweb.org/2021/04/april-2021-town-hall-registration-open/.

• May 4, 2021: The Coalition for Compassionate Care of California will present a webinar on Caring & Commemoration: Creative Models for the Dying in the Face of COVID. The webinar is free to members, and one CEU is available for nurses and social workers. Find more information and tickets at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/caring-commemoration-creative-models-for-the-dying-in-the-face-of-covid-tickets-149609767843, and in the first picture below.

• July 14, 2021: NIDDK will present a six-hour workshop on Technologies to Optimize Kidneys for Transplant, in an effort to increase the supply of kidneys for transplantation. Find more information and register at https://www.niddk.nih.gov/news/meetings-workshops/2021/technologies-optimize-kidneys-transplant, and in the second picture below.

FMC CE Webinars

The FMC Renal Therapies Group is presenting a Medical Education Online Webex Series of daily continuing education credit webinars. Topics for November 2-6, 2020 include home dialysis prescriptions, hyperphosphatemia, medical evidence for more frequent HD, PD essentials, and tidal PD. The remainder of November includes courses on urgent start PD, the peritoneal equilibrium test, infectious and non-infectious PD complications, PD software, fluid management, simplified dosing, anemia, and other topics. Find links to everything you need to know at https://www.cvent.com/events/medical-education-webex-series/event-summary-d2ca127a10594ddfb52335b657b58bb2.aspx.

9/10 QIP PY2021-24

CMS has released the proposed ESRD QIP Technical Specifications for PY2021, 2022, and 2024.  Proposed changes include:

• Elimination of Pain Assessment (NOT Depression Screening as indicated earlier), NHSN Healthcare Personnel Vaccination, Anemia Management, and Serum Phosphorous in PY2021.

• New measures for Medication Reconciliation Reporting and Existing-Patient Transplant Waitlist for PY2022.

• A new measure for Incident-Patient Transplant Waitlist in PY2024.

The proposed Technical Specifications can be found at https://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Quality-Initiatives-Patient-Assessment-Instruments/ESRDQIP/061_TechnicalSpecifications.html.  Comments on the proposals are due by September 10, 2018.  For more information see https://nwrnbulletins.wordpress.com/2018/07/11/cy2019-esrd-pps-proposed-rule/.

9/10 CY2019 ESRD PPS Proposed Rule

CMS has released a proposed rule for the CY2019 ESRD PPS, titled Proposed Updates to Policies and Payment Rates for the ESRD PPS, … QIP; and Payment for Renal Dialysis Services Furnished to Individuals with AKI and a fact sheet summarizing it.  The ellipsis in the title refers to durable medical equipment changes included in the same proposed rule.  Find the fact sheet at https://www.cms.gov/Newsroom/MediaReleaseDatabase/Fact-sheets/2018-Fact-sheets-items/2018-07-11.html.

The fact sheet includes summaries of:

• Removing the Healthcare Personnel Vaccination, Pain Assessment, Anemia Management, and Serum Phosphorus reporting measures from the PY2021 QIP.
• Restructuring domains and weights in the PY2021 QIP.
• Expanding NHSN validation in both PY2021 and PY2022.
• Adding measures for Percentage of Patients Waitlisted and Medication Reconciliation to the PY2022 QIP.
• Adding a measure on Standardized First Transplant Waitlist Ratio for Incident Patients to the PY2024 QIP.

The proposed rule can be found on the Federal Register at https://s3.amazonaws.com/public-inspection.federalregister.gov/2018-14986.pdf.  Comments must be received by September 10, 2018.

KDIGO Guideline on Living Kidney Donation

KDIGO has announced the publication of their Guideline for Living Kidney Donors.  Find the announcement at http://kdigo.org/kdigo-announces-publication-of-the-living-kidney-donor-guideline/ and the Guideline itself at http://kdigo.org/guidelines/ along with KDIGO Guidelines on AKI, Anemia, BP, Transplant Recipients, CKD, MBD, GN, HVC, and Lipids.

PY2017 PSCs and PSRs

CMS is advising dialysis facilities that PY2017 PSCs will be available for download starting December 15, 2016.  Facilities will be able to access their PY2017 PSCs until the start of the PY 2018 Preview Period next summer.  Please retain the PDF file containing your PSCs so that you cam generate a replacement paper copy as needed throughout 2017.  Facilities must post their PSC in a prominent patient area throughout 2017.

Final PSRs will be available for download after the first of January.  CMS will notify facilities once they have confirmed the availability date.

CMS has identified over 100 facilities who do not currently have a point of contact (POC) designated in the QIP system.  CMS urges those facilities to establish a POC as soon as possible.  It is the POC who will be authorized to access Final PSRs on the ESRD QIP system on behalf of their facility.  System users are required to change their passwords every 60 days in order to keep their accounts active.  Users whose accounts become inactive will need to contact the QualityNet Help Desk for assistance in reactivating those accounts.

If you have questions or concerns regarding use of the ESRD QIP system, please contact the QualityNet Help Desk at qnetsupport@hcqis.org or (866) 288-8912 from 5am to 5pm PST Monday through Friday.

Due to high volume of use on the ESRD QIP application, you may experience some delays in retrieving your reports.  Once you request a report, please allow two hours for the system to generate your report.  If your requested report is not retrieved within two hours, then submit a helpdesk ticket providing your CCN and the desired report name.

Finally, CMS has published a memo outlining its methodology for monitoring changes in access to dialysis.  Find it at https://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Quality-Initiatives-Patient-Assessment-Instruments/ESRDQIP/09_MonitorandEval.html .  The page also includes Fact Sheets for anemia, bone and mineral disease. vascular access. and URR.

NKF PERC Education for Professionals

NKF offers a number of webinars under their Professional Education Resource Center or PERC, many of which offer free continuing education credits for multiple disciplines.  Some examples:

• Social Work Collaboration for Transplant Patients
• Evidence-Based Social Work
• Anemia and Cardiovascular Disease
• Nephropathic Cystinosis 
• Western Diets: Are We Killing Our Patients?
• Ethical Issues When Family Interferes with Transplant
• Blood Pressure Monitoring
• Cardiometabolic Diseases
• Hyperkalemia
• Living Kidney Donations
• Early Detection and Prevention
• Secondary Hyperparathyroidism
• Hepatitis C
• Mineral and Bone Disorder
• Water
• Minorities, Transplant, and Home Dialysis
• ESRD Core Survey
• Polypharmacy
• Albumin
• Depression and Pain
• Nephrotic Syndrome
• Lipid Management
• Journal of Renal Nutrition articles

See http://education.kidney.org/courses for information and registration.

9/15 DOPPS Webinar

The Arbor Research Collaborative for Health will present a webinar September 15, 2016 on trends in hemodialysis shown by their DOPPS Practice Monitor surveys.  The webinar will emphasize anemia management and intradialytic weight loss.  For more information and registration, see http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?m=1106091886730&ca=1836217f-032c-488e-b4bd-000c397fcdbd .