Sponsored by: Pursuing Perfect Care: Improving Chronic Care Outcomes by Treating the Whole Patient

During Pursuing Perfect Care: Improving Chronic Care Outcomes by Treating the Whole Patient, a 90-minute audio conference on August 22, 2007, you'll hear from organizations who are implementing perfect care processes in heart failure and medication management with details on how they've implemented their programs and the results they are achieving.

For more information, please visit:http://store.hin.com/product.asp?itemid=3725

1. P4P Incentives Might Motivate Quality Improvement Efforts By Physician Groups
2. Physician Quality Reporting Initiative Resource Kit
3. Hospital Moves Toward EHRs, Enhances Patient Safety with New Workflow Tool
4. Building a Health Management IT Platform for Health Coaching
5. Featured Healthcare Podcast: Team-based Training, Culture of Acceptance Keys to Avoiding Unintended Consequences of Pay for Performance
6. New Treatment Counteracts Cocaine-Induced Symptoms
7. Alcohol/Substance Abuse Dependency Clinical Guidelines Second Edition
8. Adult Day Partnerships: How to Find the Right Partner
9. Profitable Partnerships in Disease Management: Community Collaborations That Enhance Care Access and Outcomes
10. HHS Grant Deadline September 7 for Projects Merging Public, Private Emergency Responders
11. Emergency Care Management
12. Healthcare Research Roundup: August 2007

Physician groups that receive pay-for-performance (PFP) incentives linking some compensation to key quality or process measures are more likely to undertake improvement efforts targeting these measures, according to a study by researchers from the University of Pittsburgh. The study was supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation through a grant to the Massachusetts Health Quality Partners. Physician group leaders broadly support such performance-based pay, but they believe the incentives must be larger than those currently offered by most commercial health plans to drive quality improvements, the study found.

To read this story in its entirety, go to:
http://www.hin.com/sw/Hindustry_MC082007.html

The Physician Quality Reporting Initiative Resource Kit, a two-volume resource kit with companion CD-ROM, provides an in-depth look at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' Physician Quality Reporting Initiative, examining why physician groups should participate in the voluntary program and 2007 changes to the program, including the 1.5 percent financial incentive for physicians beginning in July 2007.

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Brookhaven Memorial Hospital Medical Center in East Patchogue, NY is closer to implementing an electronic health record with the adoption of Siemens Medical Solutions “Soarian®” for use in their 321-bed community hospital. Soarian, a next-generation, workflow-engineered healthcare information system that supports patient-centered care, is a suite of solutions that will enable the hospitals to re-engineer processes throughout its organization, helping to drive efficiencies, address patient safety initiatives and enhance clinical decision-making. Brookhaven Memorial is the first facility in the New York City area to go live with this tool.

To read this story in its entirety, go to:
http://www.hin.com/sw/hospital_HSmanagement082007.html

Building a Health Management IT Platform for Health Coaching, a June 13, 2007 audio conference on CD-ROM, examined how healthcare organizations can effectively build a platform for an effective health coaching program.

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Current quality measures focus on patient care upon admittance and care at end of stay but tend to ignore all aspects of care during the patient's stay, says Dr. Dale Bratzler, medical director of the Hospital Interventions Quality Improvement Organization Support Center. He identifies several areas where improvement may result in better transitions of care, including the patient's discharge from the hospital. He is observing a cultural shift toward the acceptance of quality ratings at healthcare organizations from the top down, and believes that team-based training -- both for medical students and full-fledged doctors and nurses -- will help ensure high-quality care for patients.

To listen to this podcast in its entirety, please visit:
http://www.hin.com/podcasts/podcast.htm#45

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center discovered a treatment that counteracts the effects of cocaine on the cardiovascular system. Using dexmedetomidine, researchers tested whether cocaine’s effect on the cardiovascular system could be muted. Results show that the drug reversed the actions of cocaine on heart rate, blood pressure and vascular resistance in the skin by interfering with the ability of cocaine to increase nerve activity.

To read this story in its entirety, go to:
http://www.hin.com/sw/behavioral_health082007.html

The second edition of Alcohol/Substance Abuse & Dependency-Clinical Guideline is an 89-page clinical guideline for screening, evaluation and management of alcohol and substance abuse disorders with extensive references and resources. Review criteria for out-or inpatient care -- admission, continuing care and discharge -- are included. This product is updated annually.

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Finding the right partner is key to building successful community alliances, Beth Meyer-Arnold, director of Luther Manor Adult Day Services, said during "Maximizing Community Partnerships to Increase Awareness, Boost Census and Enhance Your Adult Day Services Program." The audio conference was sponsored by the National Adult Day Services Association (NADSA) and Adult Day Services Letter. First, Meyer-Arnold suggested, an organization should examine its philosophy and/or mission to determine whether a potential partner fits in with that mission. "If it doesn’t fit, then looking for a partner is probably not the next step you want to do, but if it fits, if it makes sense for you to do, then you would proceed," she said.

To read this story in its entirety, go to:
http://www.hin.com/sw/long_term_care082007.html

Health Management Career Center Update is a free bi-monthly email newsletter for healthcare management professionals seeking new career opportunities and healthcare organizations that are seeking to fill health management positions within their companies.

Healthcare Buyer's Connection is a bi-monthly email newsletter for buyers and sellers of healthcare products and services. It highlights news on trends in healthcare purchasing and marketing and recommends reading for keeping up-to-date on e-commerce.

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It may take a village to raise a child, but disease management (DM) programs across the country are benefiting from partnerships with community resources that significantly enrich the breadth and quality of their initiatives. Taking a page from Ed Wagner's Chronic Care model, many DM organizations are teaming up with state programs, local agencies, schools, faith-based organizations, businesses and clubs to fill gaps in program offerings and coverage.

For more information, please visit:
http://store.hin.com/product.asp?itemid=3731

Healthcare organizations have until September 7 to apply for emergency care grants that will award $25 million to up to three hospitals and healthcare facilities, according to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The program focuses on hospital surge capacity, emergency care system capability, and community and hospital preparedness for public health emergencies.

For more information, please visit:
http://www.hin.com/sw/healthLaw_regulation082007.html

An 86-page toolbox of guidelines, benefit interpretations, policies and procedures for the effective management of appropriate and medically necessary emergency and urgent care services. This product includes strategies for after-hours emergency care, plus review criteria guidelines to develop an effective after-hours and emergency care program that will provide quality-driven care and meet most coverage determinations. References and resources include links to emergency care protocols and guidelines and other Web resources.

For more information, please visit:
http://store.hin.com/product.asp?itemid=3588

In highlights from the month's Healthcare Daily Data Bytes, see how American voters feel about changes to the healthcare system. Whoever leads those changes might consider what Harvard Medical School has learned about offering Medicare to the near-elderly. Also, there's good news for coffee-drinking runners and advice for physicians on two sensitive topics -- talking to terminally ill patients and coping with medical errors.

For more research highlights, please visit:
http://www.hin.com/sw/healthcare_research_roundup082007.html

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