January 2020 View as Webpage

News You Need

Network Council Meeting Recording Now Available The Network Council meeting served as the official kick off for our 2020 Quality Improvement Activity (QIA) projects. If you did not attend live, please watch the recording linked below. You can also download the slides here . View the Recording

View Highlights from the 2020 Network Council Meeting 2020 Network Goals Are Now Available

Network Council Evaluation and Departmental Survey We want to know how we can improve our services! Please submit an evaluation of Qsource ESRD Network 12, our service departments, and the Network Council webinar. We hope that every facility would submit this voluntary feedback to help us improve.

Take the Survey

Newly Elected and Re-elected Board Members Thank you for your nominations and votes to select the 2020 Board of Directors and Medical Review Board. To see a list of newly elected members, click here .  

Don’t Forget…Email Addresses Have Changed! P lease note that our email addresses have changed and we will no longer have access to our @nw12.esrd.net email after Feb. 15.   See a list of the new addresses .

Upcoming Network Events

2020 Grievance Update Webinar This webinar will include a patient perspective and data overview of the Grievances processed by the Network last year, the CMS Grievance Definition, Network process, and how to file a Grievance. All facilities will be expected to participate by joining the call or watching the recording.  Date: Thursday, Jan. 30 Time: 1- 2 p.m. CT Register After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar. Third Annual Transplant Symposium in Omaha, Neb. Date: Thursday, May 7, 2020 Final agenda to be announced. Get More Information NPR Connection Call Dates: Feb. 13 or Feb. 14 Time: 1:00 CT We encourage all NPRs to join the call to connect with the Network and other patients to learn and share about ways to improve the patient experience of care. For audio, you will need to also call-in using the following information: *New call in information for 2020* Phone:   1-877-309-2071 Access Code:   305-463-275# Webinar ID: 851-734-019 Register to Join Online *This registration information is subject to change for future calls. We will send out notification if that occurs.

Other Events

ESRD NCC LAN Call Series The End Stage Renal Disease National Coordinating Center Quality Improvement Activity Learning and Action Networks (ESRD NCC QIA LANs) hosts a series of calls based on topics of the CMS Quality Improvement Activities (QIAs). ALL ESRD facilities are invited to these meetings because improving the lives of dialysis patients in these areas is a global goal. Please also share these calls with your patients.   Upcoming Call: Transplant LAN Date: Jan. 21 Time: 2-3 p.m. CT Register Now 40th Annual Dialysis Conference Kansas City Feb. 8-11, 2020  Visit the Annual Dialysis Conference website for more information. CKD ECHO 1st and 3rd Thursdays 12-1 p.m.  University of Missouri’s Kidney Disease ECHO CMS Quality Conference 2020 Dates: Feb. 25 - Feb. 27 Location: Baltimore Hilton 401 West Pratt Street Baltimore, MD 21201 Find Out More & Register

How to Communicate with your Donor Family Date: Wednesday, Jan. 29 Time: 6-7:30 p.m. CT Location: Midwest Transplant Network 1900 West 47th Place Westwood, KS 66205 To register: Contact Andy Donnelly at Gift of Life by email or by calling 913-851-1947

Patient Engagement

Topic of the Month

As part of the Network’s efforts to support facility level patient engagement, each month we provide a “Topic of the Month” sheet for the upcoming monthly topic.

January Topic of the Month: Active and Healthy Living

February Topic of the Month: Speak Up and Share

Patient Engagement in Action

All Aboard the Transplant Train! Charlene Johnson, NPR and Patient Advisory Council (PAC) member and family member from Atlantic, Iowa, took ideas discussed at a PAC meeting and developed a fun bulletin board titled “Board the Transplant Train”. Each train car has ideas to get you on the train to kidney transplant. Great work Charlene!

Thanking our Network Patient Representatives Thank you to all the facility staff who worked with and supported the NPRs in 2019! If you have a current NPR enrolled with the Network, you should have received a Certificate of Appreciation to present to your NPR. Please take a photo and share it with the Network so we can include them on our NPR Honor Wall. Please email photos to  DeeDee Velasquez-Peralta .

Relieving Stress for Patients Sleep disruption, pain, discomfort, anxiety are all common stressors for patients who are hospitalized, but they are often very common for dialysis patients as well. Read the following white paper (registration required) to see what hospitals have done to improve the patient experience with strategies to relief stress.

Quality Improvement Corner

Participation Commitment Agreement In an effort to provide clear expectations between the ESRD Network and dialysis providers and transplant centers  in our region, we have created a commitmen t statement. The Network 12 Participation Agreement may be kept on file at your dialysis facility.    We ask that each facility submit an attestation to help us track your receipt of this resource.  Quality Improvement Activity Launch - Environmental Scan We ask that your facility submit this QIA-specific Environmental Scan by Jan. 24. The purpose of this tool is to better understand the current practices at your facility, focus on potential improvement opportunities, and establish a baseline for engagement efforts.  Treatment Choice Champions Vocational Rehabilitation Bloodstream Infection Long Term Catheter Focus Group

Data News You Can Use

CMS 2744 Annual Facility Survey

ESRD Quality Incentive Program: CY 2020 ESRD PPS Final Rule Information

The survey period will start Feb. 17. All surveys must be submitted without errors by March 31. Please do not start your survey before Feb. 17 to give time for 2019 admissions to be finalized.

Starting in the January 2020 clinical month, all dialysis facilities must enter medication reconciliation data into CROWNWeb. Failure to do so could result in payment reductions in 2021. View the CMS training .

CROWNWeb Announcement and Important Reminders

REMEMBER: NHSN Data Deadlines

NHSN is the nation’s most widely used healthcare-associated infection tracking system. NHSN provides facilities, states, regions, and the nation with data needed to identify problem areas, measure the progress of prevention efforts, and ultimately eliminate healthcare-associated infections. Contact the NHSN Helpdesk ( NHSN@cdc.gov ) with any questions

2020 NHSN Data Deadlines Q4 (Oct.-Dec 2019.): March 31 Q1 (Jan.-March 2020): June 30 Q2 (April-June 2020): September 30 Q3 (Jul.-Sept. 2020): December 31

Facilities should: Review the NHSN Dialysis Event Protocol to ensure all data were correctly reported to NHSN. 3 Steps to Review Dialysis Event Surveillance Data Use the How to Create and Read an NHSN Report for CMS ESRD QIP guide to verify your facility has met the minimum CMS reporting requirements. Refer to the How to Create and Read an NHSN Report for Bloodstream Infections guide to review your facility’s bloodstream infection rates.  Contact the NHSN Helpdesk ( nhsn@cdc.gov , subject line ‘Dialysis’) with any questions. 

Recalls and Safety Alerts

This month's KCER Watch Newsletter Safety Alerts

This resource was developed while under contract with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Contract #HHSM-500-2016-00012C. The contents presented do not necessarily reflect CMS policy. 20.Q-ESRD12.01.007