THCA Notes

Volume XXXII, Number 1
January 2017

This month’s Commitment to Care (C to C) focuses on Recognizing THCA’s 2016 Quality Award Winners and Growing More

Building Prevention into Every Day Practice: Framework for Successful Clinical Outcomes Series – Part 6 of 13

This is part of a series featuring one element of the Building Prevention into Every Day Practice: Framework for Successful Clinical Outcomes. Success in achieving positive resident/patient outcomes is even more critical now than ever before. The link between quality and payment in long term and post-acute care is growing stronger, as evidenced by the SNF Value Based Purchasing Program (VBP), Improving Post-Acute Care Transformation (IMPACT) Act, SNF Quality Reporting Program (QRP) and more.

In addition, regulatory activity is intensifying through focused surveys on adverse events, dementia care and MDS. The Five-Star Rating system and Nursing Home Compare have been revised and will add items in the future as it broadens public reporting and transparency. Most importantly, consumers expect and deserve high quality care.

The entire framework outlines key elements from both an organizational and clinical nature that are critical to successful clinical and organizational outcomes. Positively, these elements reflect common denominators that cross multiple care situations. Therefore, instead of being yet another initiative or single focused project to achieve just one outcome, it is a way of acting, thinking and being that will benefit multiple areas across an organization. Each element is addressed in detail throughout the framework.

This month THCA is featuring the element of Clinical Foundation: Consistent Use of Evidence-Based Practice

Key Takeaways: Consistent Use of Evidence-Based Practice

Practice is based on evidence as well as shared decision-making between clinical experts, the residents’ experiences and preferences, and other robust sources of information.

Evidence-based practice can help decrease uncertainty and lead to important improvements in resident quality and safety, while also contributing to cost savings.

The identification and use of reliable evidence-based approaches contributes substantially to safe, effective, patient-centered, efficient, timely, and equitable care.

Probing Questions for Team Reflection and Discussion:

What evidence-based practices do we use?
What areas of our practice do we have uncertainty? Are there evidence-based practices that will help us improve?
Do we use evidence-based care paths to systematically address care?

Visit the AHCA Clinical Practice website to learn more about the element of “Clinical Foundation: Consistent Use of Evidence-Based Practice” and answers to these key questions:

What does this mean? Why is this important? What are some examples? What is my part (as an individual employee, manager or practitioner)? What can my organization do?

Start somewhere, pick one element and work through it with your team.

Enjoy the journey through the framework!

“The Quality Initiative Series – Succeeding in the Midst of Change”

The AHCA Quality team is creating a series of FREE education Webinars which covers the best practices to help members with many of the new regulatory, payment or public reporting changes. The series is designed to provide critical support to members. You can register for the first webinar here.

The schedule is as follows:

January 25, 2017 4 – Staff Stability

April 26, 2017 5 – Antipsychotic Drug Reduction

June 21, 2017 6 – Functional Outcomes

September 20, 2017 7 – Customer Satisfaction/Experience

November 15, 2017 8 – Hospital Admissions in Long Stay Settings