Health Equity Hospital Highlights: May 2024 Issue
Health Equity Hospital Highlights: May 2024 Issue Read More »
Physician Office
Saluting the Physicians Who Support the IPRO QIN-QIO
IPRO QIN-QIO is grateful for the support of many physicians who collaborate with us on a variety of impactful projects. Among these dedicated professionals is Dr. Vicky Parikh, a highly
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Every Day is Drug Take Back Day
Talk to your patients about National Drug Take Back Day Do you know that many people hold on to unused or expired medicines? Do you know that most people that
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Health Equity Updates: January 2024 Issue
Download the newsletter View the new edition of our health equity newsletter featuring news, events, and tools to support your efforts to eliminate healthcare disparities within your community. This month,
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October is Health Literacy Month
October is Health Literacy Month, an observance that was founded in 1999 by Helen Osbourne. Health literacy is a crucial determinant of health and outcome. Healthy People 2030 defines health
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The Patient’s Perspective: Whole Person Care Addressing Chronic Pain
September is National Pain Awareness Month. To bring awareness to the importance of individualized, multidisciplinary, and multimodal approaches to pain care, we posed questions about life with chronic pain and
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Increasing Referrals for Smoking Cessation Counseling
Despite decades of progress in the United States, tobacco use remains a pressing public health concern as the leading cause of preventable disease, disability, and death. States and local stakeholders continue
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Hospital Health Equity Highlights: August 2023
View the latest hospital equity news, events, and tools to support your efforts in eliminating healthcare disparities within your health system and communities. In this issue:
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Insights from the Field: Albany Medical Center’s Dr. Alan Sanders on Sepsis Awareness Month
The rapid identification and treatment of persons with sepsis and septic shock continues to be a challenge in our medical system. We have made great progress in approaching the critical treatment
Heat Advisory Triggers Warnings for Vulnerable Populations
The extreme heat that has been affected large portions of the United States this summer is expected to continue. Nursing homes, homecare agencies, and other providers should educate their staff
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Leqembi (lecanimab-irmb): What Traditional Approval Means for Early Onset Alzheimer’s Disease Treatment
by Robert C. Accetta, RPh, BCGP, FASCP, Sr. Pharmacist, HCQIP, IPRO The FDA granted traditional approval of Leqembi (lecanimab-irmb), a monoclonal antibody drug which may help reduce the progression of
Tools to Support Safe Care Transition Communications
As part of discharge planning, hospitals are expected to provide post-acute providers and caregivers information, including current course of illness and treatment, post-discharge goals of care, and treatment preferences, to
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Health Equity Updates: May 2023 Newsletter
View the new edition of our health equity newsletter featuring news, events, and tools to support your efforts in eliminating healthcare disparities within your communities. This month, read about Asian
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Adults Need Vaccines, Too
Vaccines Are Not Just for Kids by Amy Sgueglia, MSN, RN, MAIC Facilitator, JSI Research & Training Institute, Inc. The COVID-19 pandemic and the COVID-19 vaccine have underscored the importance
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Fall and Injury Prevention: A 6-Part Webinar Series
Falls represent a major public health problem around the world and continue to be the most common adverse event in healthcare settings.The IPRO Hospital Quality Improvement Contractor (HQIC), in collaboration
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TAP: A Strategy to Prioritize and Implement HAI Prevention Efforts in Your Hospital
Date: Tuesday, April 18, 2023 Start Time: 3:00 – 4:00 PM ET Join us for a webinar featuring subject matter experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
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Health Equity Updates: April 2023 Newsletter
View the new edition of our health equity newsletter featuring news, events, and tools to support your efforts in eliminating healthcare disparities within your communities. This month, read about National
Health Equity Updates: April 2023 Newsletter Read More »
Rhode Island Tobacco Cessation: Help your patients take their last smoke break.
Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death, in fact on average, smokers die nearly 10 years earlier than nonsmokers.[1] Quitting smoking is one of the most important actions people
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Integrating Z-Codes into Your Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) Strategy
Date: Thursday, March 23, 2023 Start Time: 12:00 – 1:00 PM Hospitals and health systems are working to address the non-medical factors that influence health, known as social determinants of
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Vaccination: A Personal Journey
By Charles W. Redd, MS, RN As we continue to move towards normalcy since the pandemic, which began in the United States in March 2020, I am often asked by
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Health Equity Updates: March 2023 Newsletter
View the new edition of our health equity newsletter featuring news, events, and tools to support your efforts in eliminating healthcare disparities within your communities. This month, read about National
Health Equity Updates: March 2023 Newsletter Read More »
NEW! CMS Training Program Update
February is American Heart Month Medicare Part B (Medical Insurance) covers cardiovascular screening blood tests once every 5 years. To learn more, visit Medicare.gov/coverage/cardiovascular-disease-screenings. This year, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood
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Partnering Beyond COVID-19 Prevention and Management of Patients with Chronic Disease
COVID-19 has changed healthcare in many ways and has delayed chronic disease management for many patients. Patients needing follow-up appointments for their chronic disease were not able to schedule appointments
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Help Curb Cardiovascular Disease by Focusing on Risk Assessment and Hyperlipidemia Screening
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death for men and women of most racial and ethnic groups in the
A Community Effort to Covid-19 Vaccinations
by Chris Symolon, Director, COVID-19 Vaccination Project, Foundation for Healthy Communities, New Hampshire Welcome to 2023, a new year, a new start, a reset! I have been reflecting on the
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National Standards for Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services (CLAS)
A blueprint to help promote health equity. What is CLAS? Culturally and linguistically appropriate services (CLAS) are a way to improve the quality of services provided to all individuals,
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Raising Preemies During a Pandemic: Vaccines Protect The Most Vulnerable
by Erin Just, BScOT, MA, Quality Improvement Coordinator, Vermont Blueprint for Health In 2019, I welcomed identical twin boys. They arrived earlier than hoped, requiring medical intervention to improve their
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Walk Alongside the Community to Combat Vaccine Hesitancy
By Sandra N. Colpitts MSN, RN, CIC, Manager, Infection Prevention and Control, South County Health, Wakefield, RI When I first became a nurse, I never imagined the adventures I would
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The Winter of our Discontent….or Maybe Not! Perspectives of an Infection Preventionist
by Mary Ellen Casey, RN, Infection Preventionist, IPRO QIN-QIO As a college student I nearly drowned. A lifeguard saved my life. I will never forget being in the water, looking
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Health Equity Updates: December 2022 Newsletter
View the new edition of our health equity newsletter featuring news, events, and tools to support your efforts in eliminating health care disparities within your communities. This month, read about
Health Equity Updates: December 2022 Newsletter Read More »
National Rural Health Day Webinar: CMS Framework for Advancing Health Care in Rural, Tribal, and Geographically Isolated Communities
Date: Tuesday, November 15, 2022 Start Time: 12:00 PM-1:00 PM ET. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Office of Minority Health (CMS OMH) is hosting a webinar in recognition
CMS Rural Health Open Door Forum
Date: Thursday, November 17, 2022 Start Time: 2:00 PM-3:00 PM Eastern Time (ET); Please dial in at least 15 minutes prior to call start time. This call will be Conference
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Increasing the Focus on Complex Care
Patients with unmet behavioral health and social needs are major contributors to high healthcare utilization and poor health outcomes. This small percentage of the population consume a disproportionate share of
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2022 AHRQ National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report
AHRQ released its annual disparities report: 2022 National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report. The report, which is mandated by Congress, provides a comprehensive overview of healthcare quality and healthcare disparities
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HHS Finalizes Physician Payment Rule Strengthening Access to Behavioral Health Services and Whole-Person Care
Rule includes expanded cancer screening coverage in support of President Biden’s Cancer Moonshot and promotes innovation and coordinated care in Medicare Today, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Now is the Time: A Compendium of Tools to Use for Great American Smokeout and Beyond
It is a well-established fact: smoking leads to disease, disability, and harm in nearly every organ system. It has long been shown to cause cancer, hypertension, heart disease, stroke, lung
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HHS Announces Listening Session on Protecting the Safety of Patients and Healthcare Workers
Date: Monday, November 14, 2022 Start Time: 1:00-2:40 pm ET Join the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), including leaders from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality,
Meet the Team: Anne Myrka
Meet Anne Myrka RPh, MAT, Senior Director of Drug Safety and Chronic Disease Management for IPRO. Anne has been in the healthcare field for 30 years. Her experience includes roles
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Influenza Vaccination to Help Protect All Adults
Date: Monday, October 24, 2022 Start Time: 3:00 – 4:00 pm ET Join the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) for a webinar on the importance of annual vaccination to
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Interim Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations for Healthcare Personnel During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Pandemic
On September 23, 2022, the CDC updated its infection prevention and control recommendations for healthcare personnel across all settings during the COVID-19 pandemic. A summary of recent changes includes: Updated
Antibiotic Stewardship: Quick Wins for Improving Duration of Therapy
November 8, 2022, 1 – 2 PM EST. Antibiotic Stewardship (AS) remains a national priority aimed at optimizing antibiotic use to effectively treat infections, protect patients from harms caused by
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CMS Physicians, Nurses & Allied Health Professionals Open Door Forum
Date: Wednesday, September 28, 2022 Start Time: 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM Eastern Time (ET); Please dial-in at least 15 minutes before call start time. This call will be Conference
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Meet the Team: Melanie Ronda
Meet Melanie Ronda, MSN, RN, Assistant Director of Health Care Quality Improvement, Nursing Home Lead for NY, NJ, and Ohio, and the Infection Preventionist for IPRO. Melanie has been in
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Meet the Team: Laura Benzel
Meet Laura Benzel from Qlarant, the Health Equity Lead for the IPRO QIN-QIO and an IPRO Health Equity Task Force member. Laura has ten years of experience working on equity-related
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CMS OMH Honors National Hispanic Heritage Month
This year, as the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Office of Minority Health (CMS OMH) honors National Hispanic Heritage Month, we will be focusing on the nation’s 60.5 million
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Clostridioides difficile: Sharing Best Practices and Outcomes Achieved
October 5, 2022 1 – 2 PM EST Pharmacy Continuing Education offered by CT Pharmacist Association The 2019 CDC Threat Report lists Clostridioides difficile (C.difficile) as an urgent threat. There
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August 28 is National Dog Appreciation Day!
There are so many reasons to love dogs, but did you know these fascinating facts about dogs and their positive effects on healthcare? Nursing home residents with dementia who interacted
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Health Equity Updates: August 2022 Health Equity Newsletter
View the new edition of our health equity newsletter featuring news, events, and tools to support your efforts in eliminating health care disparities within your communities.
Health Equity Updates: August 2022 Health Equity Newsletter Read More »
The Importance of Collecting Patient Demographic Data
“How do we know if we have disparities and how can we prevent disparities that exist in our patient outcomes?” If your organization is asking these questions, the collection
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Four Ways to Improve Health Literacy at Your Health Care Organization
October is Health Literacy Month, when we take time to recognize the importance of creating equitable access to health care information for individuals, and the role health care organizations play
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CMS Announces Historic Changes to Physician Self-Referral Regulations
CMS Memo | November 22, 2020 – Today, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) finalized changes to outdated federal regulations that burdened health care providers with added administrative
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Learn More About 2020 Medicare Promoting Interoperability Program Requirements
In 2020, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) continued its overhaul of the Medicare Promoting Interoperability Program to continue the advancement of certified electronic health record technology (CEHRT)
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Physician Compare Preview Period: Informational Presentations Now Available
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has posted two new informational presentations focused on the Physician Compare Preview Period that began on June 22 and will close on
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COVID-19: Coverage of Physician Telehealth Services Provided to SNF Residents
The current COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE) does not waive any requirements related to Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) Consolidated Billing (CB). However, CMS added CPT codes 99441, 99442, and 99443,
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The 2021 MIPS Self-Nomination Period is Now Open
The 2021 MIPS Self-Nomination Period for QCDRs and Qualified Registries is Now Open As of today, July 1, 2020, the 2021 Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) Performance Period Self-Nomination period
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