December 12, 2016
     
Happy Holidays
The staff members of IPRO ESRD Network of New England want to take this opportunity to say thank you for the tireless efforts of ESRD healthcare professionals. We applaud your committment and dedication in providing quality of care to the patients you serve. As our partners in the renal community, your collaboration and hard work helps to ensure the realization of our goals for improved quality and safety for all ESRD patients in the New England states.
 
Wishing you a season of joy and looking forward to continued success in 2017. Happy Holidays.
 
IPRO ESRD Network of New England Staff

Network Hosted Webinar Event!
IPRO ESRD Network of New England will be hosting a Webinar Event on Thursday, January 12, 2017, 2:00-3:00 PM ET. The webinar will provide an overview of the 2017 Network Activities and detail the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) expectations in regards to the 2016-2020 ESRD Statement of Work.
 
Participation from each dialysis facility in New England (designated Network Council representatives) is requested.
 
To register click here and for more information contact the Network at (203) 387-9332.
 
Quality Improvement
December 31, 2016 - Reporting Deadline for NHSN Dialysis Event Surveillance
To meet the CMS ESRD Quality Incentive Program (QIP) National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) reporting requirements for Payment Year 2018, outpatient hemodialysis facilities must submit their third quarter 2016 Dialysis Event (DE) data collected from July 1, 2016 through September 30, 2016, by Saturday, December 31, 2016. New or revised third quarter data entered into NHSN after December 31st will not be submitted to CMS. Therefore, please be aware that any changes or corrections to third quarter 2016 data should be made prior to the reporting deadline.

The Network recommends using the following resources to review facility-level data before the deadline.  These resources and others can be found on the Dialysis Event homepage:
Contact the NHSN Helpdesk ([email protected], subject line 'Dialysis') with any questions.
Call for TEP Members: ESRD Dialysis Facility Compare (DFC) Star Ratings
CMS has contracted with the University of Michigan Kidney Epidemiology and Cost Center (UM-KECC) to convene a Technical Expert Panel (TEP) to obtain recommendations on potential quality measures to include in the Dialysis Facility Compare Star Ratings.
 
The TEP Charter and Nomination form can be found on the CMS website: https://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Quality-Initiatives-Patient-Assessment-Instruments/MMS/TechnicalExpertPanels.html.
 
If you wish to nominate yourself or other individuals for consideration, please complete the form and email it to [email protected] by close of business (5:00pm ET) on December 22, 2016.

 
Patient Services
The Network Needs Patient Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) - Nominate Now!
To Network activities, the IPRO ESRD Network of New England is seeking committed and informed patients to advise us in promoting quality of care to patients across the New England states. These Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) will assist the Network in developing patient-centered projects in alignment with CMS mandates.
 
Social Workers : Please discuss this opportunity with your patients, and encourage them to volunteer to be SMEs. Please talk to your Patient Advisory Committee (PAC) Representatives, and ask them to consider becoming Patient SMEs in addition to their PAC duties. Patients who served as SMEs in 2016 have already been sent an e-mail about renewing participation for 2017.
 
The role of a Patient SME:
  • Participate on conference calls, as needed.
  • Review and develop educational materials.
  • Discuss planning for educational events (webinars, face-to-face meetings, and conference calls).
  • Evaluate project interventions.
  • Share ideas/concerns/thoughts to enhance learning for all.
 
For more information please visit the ESRD Network Program website. If you have a patient that is interested in becoming an SME, please complete this form and fax to (203) 389-9902 by Friday , January 6, 2017.
 
If you have any questions, please contact Merari Rosario, Community Outreach Coordinator here or by calling (203) 285-1223.
Healthy Eating Tips for the Holidays
It's that time of year again: weeks of treats at work, big holiday meals, and edible gifts. How do you stick to your meal plan when temptations are everywhere?
Not to worry! No food needs to be on the naughty list. Have a small serving of the dishes you really love and can't get any other time of year. Then serve with a generous helping of rest and physical activity to help keep blood sugar levels steady.
Between family festivities, work events, and a growing to-do list, you've got a lot on your plate this holiday season. Try these 5 tips for staying on track no matter what's cooking.
  • Holiday-proof your plan
  • Outsmart the buffet
  • Fit in favorites
  • Keep moving
  • Get your sleep
For a more in-depth look at these holiday tips, visit the CDC website.
The Story of Peggy Lillis: The Other Side of Antibiotics
"Prior to my mother's death, I would never have imagined that an antibiotic could precipitate a deadly disease. Ten days after beginning a course of antibiotics, she was dead. Like many Americans we had never heard of Clostridium difficile. Nor did we realize the system-wide effects that many antibiotics have on the body." -- Christian Lillis, Executive Director, Peggy Lillis Foundation

As part of this year's Get Smart About Antibiotic Week, CDC partnered with the Peggy Lillis Foundation on a video about the late Peggy Lillis, who died from a Clostridium difficile infection (C. difficile) caused by antibiotic use. Today on CDC's Safe Healthcare Blog, Christian Lillis, Peggy's son and executive director of the Peggy Lillis Foundation, is sharing his own experience with antibiotics from a young age and the impact of his mother's death on his work in patient safety.


Find out more about appropriate antibiotic use: http://www.cdc.gov/getsmart/

Kidney Community Emergency Response Coalition - KCER Watch
The November 2016 edition of the KCER Watch - Emergency Preparedness Bulletin discusses health and safety topics for the kidney community, including:
  • CMS Proposed New Rule Would Update Fire Safety Standards at Dialysis Facilities
  •  CMS Announces More Funding Dollars to Support Zika Prevention and Treatment
  • State of Emergency Declared in North Carolina Due to Wildfires
  •  2016 KCER Summit
  •  Now is the Time to Make Your Home Heating Safe
  •  Tips on Cleaning Mold After a Flood
  • La Niña Has Officially Arrived-What Does This Mean for Winter?
  • Webinar: Celebrating National Native American Heritage Month through Community Preparedness
Click here to read the full issue of KCER Watch.

 


 
 
Data Management
Reminder - CROWNWeb 5.0 New User Training
Are you new to CROWNWeb, or just need a refresher on new features or how to use the system?  CROWNWeb 5.0 New User Training is for you!  This informative, 90-minute course covers all the basic information a new CROWNWeb user would need to begin using the system. The next session of New User Training will be held on Tuesday, December 13, 2016, 2:00 - 3:30 PM ET.
 
Have Your Key Facility Personnel Been Updated in CROWNWeb?
CROWNWeb Data Management Guidelines require that key facility personnel are added within five business days of staff changes. The guidelines also indicate that facility staff should review personnel information at least quarterly.
 
As an efficient and cost effective way to communicate with our community, the Network relies on email to send important information. The Network started a new contract year on December 1, 2016, and new quality improvement activities will soon be initiated. As you know, CROWNWeb is the Network's source for facility personnel contact information.
To ensure that the appropriate individuals at your facility receive critical information from the Network on an ongoing basis, CROWNWeb must reflect current and up-to-date information for key personnel at your facility.
 
Please verify facility/personnel contact information in CROWNWeb for accuracy.   Anyone with access to CROWNWeb can update facility personnel information. It is very important that personnel contact information (including name, Job Description, JOBCODE, job title, e-mail, and phone number) for key staff members at your facility is kept up to date in CROWNWeb.
 
Transplant centers that do not have access to CROWNWeb can fax the information to the Network at 203-389-9902.
 
The key staff members include only those personnel with Job descriptions and Job codes listed below.

Key staff members are:

Job Description
 JOBCODE
Facility Head Nurse/Nurse Supervisor
 FHNNS
Facility Social Worker
 FSW
Facility Dietitian
 FDIET
Facility Medical Director
 FMD
Facility Administrator
 FADM
Facility Nephrologist
 FNEPH
Facility Data Contact
 FDC


The facility personnel screen in CROWNWeb is divided into three sections:
 
  • Key personnel info - complete all the information
  • Positions - create as many positions as required. If any staff member's position changes, e.g., Medical Director, remove the position. Do not delete or inactivate the staff member. One can add and remove as many positions as needed.
  • Personnel contact info - Email is required.
Use the Network Data Knowledge Base and Customer Portal
With the increase in data that must be submitted, as well as systems through which the data is collected, there are multiple ways in which you can reach the Network Data Support Team for help. 
  • Knowledge Base and Customer Portal http://help.esrd.ipro.org
  • ESRD Network Data Department can be reached at the following email address: [email protected]
  • The Network Data Department can be reached by phone at 203-387-9332.
*Please remember that you should NEVER include any patient-specific information such as Name, Date of Birth, Social Security Number, Medicare Claim Number, etc. The only patient identifier that can safely be communicated is the Unique Patient Identifier (UPI) from CROWNWeb.*
 
Upcoming Meeting & Events
December 13-15, 2016: CMS Quality Conference 2016, Aligning for Innovation and Outcomes, Baltimore, Maryland

IPRO End-Stage Renal Disease Network of New England, the ESRD Organization for Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont, prepared this material under contract with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The contents presented do not necessarily reflect CMS policy. CMS Contract Number: HHSM-500-2016-00019C.
Stay Connected
IPRO ESRD Network of New England
1952 Whitney Avenue, 2nd Floor, Hamden, CT 06517
PH 203-387-9332 · FAX 203-389-9902
esrd.ipro.org
[email protected]