AJRR Platform's Enhanced Capabilities
 
The new AJRR dashboards will have improved data analysis and mobile support
Our spring 2015 merger with the California Joint Replacement Registry (CJRR) initiated a chain of events that will leave us with a much more comprehensive and efficient Registry platform. Every AJRR participant with a dashboard subscription will have access to an enhanced version of our platform by month's end. This sleeker, more modern platform will possess new features and functions, such as dashboards with improved data analysis and mobile support. Starting mid-October, Authorized Users will be sent new login credentials, allowing them to access the new system and view their data.  All users will be provided with an in-depth user guide in late October as more Registry features become available. We will also be hosting a training webinar in November to ensure proper use of the new system.
 
This transition onto a new data platform is happening in phases, with the final phase wrapping up on January 1, 2017. We understand the importance of quality initiatives like the Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement (CJR) model, so we are releasing a template report for each of the required CJR patient-reported outcome (PRO) measures later this year. Additional projects in the works include finalizing ICD-10 codes for the collection of Level II patient risk factors, comorbidities, and complications data, and a project to automate the cleansing of data files to allow for a 24-hour turnaround from when a data file is submitted to when it appears in the Registry platform.
 
If you have any questions about our transition onto this new platform, please contact your region's AJRR Data Analyst
2016 Annual Report to be Released Next Month

The 2016 AJRR Annual Report will be released on Friday, November 11, at the American Association of Hip and Knee Surgeons (AAHKS) Annual Meeting. It will also be available for download on the AJRR website that day.
 
AJRR's third Annual Report covers 427,182 hip and knee replacement procedures from 416 hospitals in 50 states. This is a 102 percent increase in procedures since the last report. Here's a sneak peek at some of this year's
findings:
  • The average patient age was 66.5 years, with nearly half of all procedures performed on individuals younger than age 65
  • Osteoarthritis was the most common reason for both hip and knee arthroplasty
  • Ceramic femoral head usage has grown significantly (p=<.001) over the past four years
Other sections of the Annual Report will include AJRR's recent accomplishments, a list of all AJRR participating institutions, and an individual California Joint Replacement Registry (CJRR) Annual Report. 

Past annual reports can be accessed through the "Publications" tab of the AJRR website. The 2016 Annual Report will be found there too.
Stop by Booth I at the AAHKS Annual Meeting

The American Association of Hip and Knee Surgeons (AAHKS)  will be holding their 26th Annual Meeting on November 10 - 13, 2016 in Dallas, TX. Stop by our booth, Booth I, for a free copy of the 2016 Annual Report and more information about the Registry. AJRR staff members will be demonstrating our new dashboards and patient-reported outcome (PRO) capabilities there. We are the official registry of AAHKS, and look forward to meeting more of their members next month.

To register for the AAHKS Annual Meeting, click 
here .
Unet Forum Presented at Quarterly Call

Our User Group Network (Unet) held its quarterly conference call on September 15,  2016.  This quarter's call had a webinar portion, and included topics such as an update  on the 2016 Annual Report and our Registry platform changes. In order to be included in next year's Annual Report, please submit data by the end of Q1 2017
Important documents can be found 
in the Unet Forum
Notable platform upgrades such as a 24-hour data  submission turnaround time and an automatic data audit were discussed during the call. 

The collection of patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) was also addressed, and webinar attendees answered polling questions identifying the measures they collect and whether they use third party vendors for assistance at their institution. Lively discussions between users followed. Our Director of Marketing and Communications then gave a short walk through of the new Unet Forum and its different capabilities. Important documents will be stored in the "Official Announcements and News from AJRR" section of the forum. The webinar concluded with our Director of Analytics polling the audience for their preferences on the way ICD-10 codes could be displayed in the new Registry platform.  Based off of the feedback from call attendees and AJRR staff, the platform will include procedure codes that can be clicked on to show the full name of the procedure.
 
To access slides and a recording from the call, register for the Unet Forum and visit the "Official Announcements and News from AJRR" section. Save the date for the upcoming December 15, 2016 call.
Slides and a Recording from the Orthopaedic Quality Resource Center Webinar Available
The AJRR Orthopaedic Quality Resource Center can be accessed 
from the AJRR website

CECity, a Premier Inc. Company, and the AJRR  collaborated to provide a webinar on the  benefits of the 2016 AJRR Orthopaedic Quality Resource Center . This session was held on September 7 at 1:00 PM EDT. Some of the topics covered were the services that the Orthopaedic Quality Resource Center provides for participating providers, the requirements for the Physicain Quaility Reporting System (PQRS) and Meaningful Use , and the new Group Practice Reporting  Option (GPRO) for PQRS. A proposed Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) reform timeline was presented, as well as instructions on how to register and utilize the Orthopaedic Quality Resource Center. The webinar ended with a question and answer session.

To view the slides from the presentation, click here. To listen to a replay of the webinar, click here. You will need to register if you did not initially register to attend the webinar.
ISAR Annual Meeting Returns to US in 2017

The 6th Annual International Society of Arthroplasty Registers Congress, the Annual Meeting of the  International Society of Arthroplasty Registries (ISAR) , will be held from May 20 - 22, 2017, in San Francisco, CA. The conference will be held at the PARC 55 San Francisco hotel. Each year, the AJRR and the California Joint Replacement Registry (CJRR) sends representatives to present research and display  posters . The 2017 featured meeting topics include: cost effectiveness/health care economics, translating research into clinical practice, innovations in registry statistics/methodologies, electronic health records and big data analytics transforming the future, and the most up to date clinical findings from international orthopaedic registries. Also, attendees that arrive early are able to go to a Napa Valley wine tasting on May 19. The CJRR Annual Meeting will also be held in San Francisco during this time.
 
To register for the 6th Annual International Society of Arthroplasty Registers Congress, look for a sign up link on the  ISAR website this fall.
Authorized Vendor Profile
 
Company Name: Wellpepper
 
Company Website: www.wellpepper.com
 
AJRR Vendor Since: October 2015
 
General Description: Wellpepper is a clinically-validated platform for patient engagement. They enable custom care plans and standardized outcome tracking that can be personalized to the needs of each patient. Health systems can track adherence to care plans, and compare with aggregate data.
 
Features Offered: Wellpepper offers outcome tracking, automated delivering, and scoring for custom and standardized survey instruments. In addition to the complete system for collecting, tracking, scoring, and submitting outcomes, Wellpepper enables you to deliver pre and post-surgical protocols customized for your health system's best practices and personalized for each patient. Outcome surveys can be delivered standalone or as part of a complete care plan that includes tasks, HIPAA compliant messaging, notifications and reminders, and personalized video. Their data and reporting capabilities enable you to compare patient and organizational progress with benchmarks.
 
Integration with AJRR: Wellpepper is able to collect standardized outcomes like HOOS, JR. and KOOS, JR., required by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), and submit them directly to AJRR on your behalf. They are able to compare your patient results to your own or anonymized aggregate data so you can get a sense of how your outcomes stack up.
 
Fun Fact: The Wellpepper office dog is called Liam Neeson.
 
A full list of AJRR's Technology Partners can be found  here .
Staff Changes in the Central and East Regions

We've seen a couple of changes among our recruiting staff this past month. Our Central Region Program Coordinator is now Jerry Manning and our new Eastern Region Program Assistant is Linda Matos. We look forward to working with both of them, and know that they will be great additions to the AJRR team. You can contact them at jmanning@ajrr.net and  lmatos@ajrr.net.

Our three Data Analysts have now been assigned geographic regions as well. Kristine Baldwin, Senior Data Analyst, is responsible for IT questions in the Western Region, Kristin Parisi, Data Analyst, takes care of the Central Region, and Stephanie Palaguachi, Data Analyst, handles the Eastern Region. Their contact information can be found on the AJRR website.

A map of the US states separated by region can be found below.
Upcoming Webinars
Introductory Webinars
AJRR staff hosts monthly introductory webinars for those who are interested in joining the Registry and would like a basic overview of what we offer. If your institution resides in one of the CJR metropolitan statistical areas, this webinar should be of special interest to you! A demonstration of the new dashboards will be provided. An introductory webinar will held at the following time:
  • November 16, 2016 at 12:00 p.m. CT
To register for this session, click here.

Previous Webinars
Patient-Reported Outcomes Informational Webinar
Our Analytics team hosted an informational webinar about the AJRR Level III patient-reported outcomes (PRO) platform on both December 9, 2015, and January 6, 2016. Recommended PRO measures were discussed, as well as the reasons for why starting a PRO data collection program is beneficial. Our Director of IT demonstrated how to use the new dashboard system, and along with the Analytics team, fielded questions on how to get started reporting. To listen to a recording of the webinar, click here. To view the slides, click here.

Recordings and slides from all other previously held webinars can be found on our website.
Data Corner


Our previous Annual Report  has a wealth of information on procedural and component data. Figure 21 (pictured above) contains some interesting findings. Ceramic head usage has been biased toward younger patients, accounting for the majority of all arthroplasties in those under age 60 and diminishing usage with each decade of advancing patient age thereafter. Since 2012, there has been a noticeable increase in ceramic head use overall mainly due to a rise in usage in younger patients: nearly three out of four patients in their 50s and younger receive ceramic heads.
 
Slides with all the tables and figures from the 2014 Annual Report can be found on our  website .
Our Newest Hospitals

We've welcomed these participants into the Registry since the last volume of The Register:

#806 - El Camino Hospital Mountain View Campus in in Mountain View, CA
#807 - El Camino Hospital Los Gatos Campus in Los Gatos, CA
#808 - Ministry Saint Mary's Hospital in Rhinelander, WI
#809 - Oswego Hospital in Oswego, NY
#810 - Salem Health in Salem, OR
#811 - OhioHealth Mansfield Hospital in Mansfield, OH
#812 - Mercy Hospital of Northwest Arkansas in Rogers, AR
#813 - Baylor Medical Center at Uptown in Dallas, TX
#814 - University Hospitals Regional Hospitals Bedford Campus in Bedford, OH
#815 - Phelps County Regional Medical Center in Rolla, MO
#816 - St. Joseph North in Lutz, FL
#817 - St. Joseph South in Riverview, FL
#818 - UF Health Shands Hospital in Gainesville, FL

AJRR currently has  818  participating hospitals in all 50 states! Click here for a full list of all participating sites.

AJRR in the News

Our partnership with Authorized Vendor Wellpepper received media coverage this past month: 


Healio/Orthopedics Today and Orthopedics This Week published articles about the launch of 2016 reporting for our Orthopaedic Quality Resource Center:

Orthopedics This Week AJRR Ramps Up Web Portal

An article mentioning Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center's participation in AJRR appeared in Becker's Hospital Review:

 
To view our press releases, click here.
Special Thanks to All of Our Contributors!
The Register is the official newsletter of the American Joint Replacement Registry serving to connect the orthopaedic community. For questions, comments, or concerns, please contact Erik Michalesko, Marketing and Communications Specialist at michalesko@ajrr.net.

The Register editor: Erik Michalesko

©2016. All rights reserved.