COMMUNITY HEALTH IMPROVEMENT WEEK IS MAY 31 TO JUNE 6
How Telligen Supports Our Community Partners
Individuals with one or more chronic conditions account for approximately $1.5 trillion in US health care spending per year. Widespread use of effective interventions, such as disease management, post-discharge care, and case management for key chronic conditions could save as much as $45 billion each year.
The Relationship Between Diabetes and Depression
Together with the
Colorado Prevention Alliance
, Telligen is helping to combat the effects of two widespread conditions: diabetes and depression. People with diabetes are more than twice as likely to suffer from depression than individuals without diabetes. What's more, people with depression and diabetes exhibit significantly higher blood sugar levels than non-depressed individuals with diabetes. The conditions are so intertwined that the American Diabetes Association recommends routine psychological assessment as part of diabetes management.
Check Your Sugar, Check Your Mood
Telligen participated in a diabetes and depression boot camp translation process led by the Colorado Prevention Alliance. During the translation process, individuals with diabetes and health care providers worked together to create messaging about diabetes and depression that resonates with both groups. "Check your sugar, check your mood," was the final result of months of work that focused on "what to say, how to say it, and who to say it to," said Colorado Prevention Alliance Executive Director Lauren Ambrozic. Health care providers will receive training materials created around this message in a campaign to increase depression screenings among individuals with diabetes in the Denver metro area, with plans to expand into rural areas.
How Telligen Can Work for You
Across our three-state Quality Innovation Network (QIN), Telligen provides diabetes self-management education (DSME) and trains diabetes peer educators and community health workers through our community partners and physicians in Colorado, Illinois, and Iowa. Telligen also offers tools, resources, webinars, and conferences at no cost to help care for people with diabetes through our work with the Everyone with Diabetes Counts national initiative. Learn how Telligen can support your work with individuals affected by diabetes by contacting meredith.koob@area-d.hcqis.org in Colorado, amy.fletcher@area-d.hcqis.org in Iowa, or merle.shapera@area-d.hcqis.org in Illinois.
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PQRS AND eRX REPORT RELEASED
2015 Registration Ends June 30
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The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) releases an annual Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS) and Electronic Prescribing (eRx) Experience Report, and the 2013 report was just announced. The report analyzes trends in program participation, incentive eligibility, and incentive payments, as well as performance measures broken down by specialty and state.
Notable results include:
- A 47% increase in eligible professional (EP) PQRS participation over 2012.
- 2013 PQRS incentive payments totaling $214,551,741.
- A 9% increase in eRx participation over 2012, with $168,298,019 in total 2013 incentive payments.
Moreover, the report indicates progress in CMS' efforts to improve quality measurements and to encourage the development of a national electronic health information infrastructure.
PQRS initially used incentive payments to encourage participation. Negative payment adjustments began on January 1, 2015 for EPs and group practices based on 2013 reporting. The eRx Incentive Program used a combination of incentive payments and payment adjustments to encourage electronic prescribing by EPs. The incentive program ended in 2013, but electronic prescribing will continue through Meaningful Use.
If you are not yet registered for the 2015 PQRS program, there are still a few weeks left to register for the PQRS Group Practice Reporting Option (GPRO) via the Physician Value - Physician Quality Reporting System (PV-PQRS) Registration System. PQRS GPRO is an option available to groups with two or more EPs. More information is available on the
PQRS Payment Adjustment Information web page. Satisfactory reporting via a PQRS GPRO is one way groups can avoid automatic downward adjustments and qualify for performance-based payment incentives under the
Value Modifier
.
Eligible groups need to sign up by midnight (EST) on June 30, 2015. For registration instructions, see the 2015 PQRS GPRO Registration Guide web page. To learn more about PQRS and how your practice may benefit from PQRS GPRO, contact marcy.cameron@area-d.hcqis.org in Colorado, barbara.wilke@area-d.hcqis.org in Iowa, or betty.wendford@area-d.hcqis.org in Illinois.
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FAQ: WHAT IS POPULATION HEALTH?
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Population health includes the health outcomes of a defined group of people, including the distribution of outcomes within the group. The group may include people served by a hospital or health care system, those living in a certain geographic area or community, or those affected by a certain condition or disease.
- Identify and analyze the distribution of specific health statuses and outcomes.
- Evaluate the clinical, social, and economic, behavioral, and environmental factors associated with the outcomes.
- Implement a broad scope of interventions to modify the health outcomes.
Population health strategies for hospitals and health care systems should include:
- Coordinated inteventions through collaborations with community stakeholders and other key partners.
- Increased preventive health services.
- Care that is culturally and linguistically appropriate.
- Promotion of healthy behaviors.
- Population health metrics tracked against dashboard targets.
Health care-associated infections (HIAs) are a serious and ongoing population health issue facing US hospitals and health care systems. Telligen partners with hospitals and health care systems in Colorado, Illinois, and Iowa to help lower the incidence of HIAs. To learn how Telligen can assist your hospital in this population health initiative, contact christine.larocca@area-d.hcqis.org or michael.boyson@area-d.hcqis.org in Colorado, sarah.cottington@area-d.hcqis.org in Iowa, or karen.boland@area-d.hcqis.org in Illinois. |
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YOUR COLORADO QIN-QIO CONTACTS:
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Colorado State Director
Michael Boyson
Regional Director
Pat Merryweather
Cardiac Health
Devin Detwiler
Coordination of Care
Penny Cook
EHR & Health Information Technology
Terrey Currie
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Healthcare-Associated Infections
Christine LaRocca
Michael Boyson
Medication Safety & Adverse Drug Event Prevention
Katy Brown
Nursing Home Healthcare-Acquired Conditions
Linda Savage
Value-Based Purchasing
& Quality Reporting
Marcy Cameron
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