QUALITY ENHANCEMENT RESEARCH INITIATIVE (QUERI)
Instructions for Preparing and Submitting Program Annual Reports – October 2017
The goals of the QUERI Program Annual Report are to track progress in achieving specific activities towards the Program’s overall impact goal and to inform QUERI of the Program’s key impacts on achieving VA national priority goals. In contrast to required progress reports generated for NIH eRA Commons and VHA Office of Research and Development, the primary audience for the Annual Reports includes VA operations partners and VA leadership. Annual reports are posted on the QUERI website. These Reports are essential in informing the overall strategic direction of QUERI and in supporting the achievement of increasing impact through bi-directional partnerships and communication.
Annual Reports are due the last Friday of October each fiscal year.
Annual reports are limited to 10 single-spaced pages of new content with 1-inch margins and 11-point Arial font. Previously entered content on completed projects should be kept in the data entry form and will not count towards the 10-page limit.
Abstract (400-word limit) - Abstract should list: 1) Cross-cutting goals and linkage to VA national priorities, 2) Brief description of each project, 3) Implementation Core progress, 4) Tools/products developed and implementation science innovations, and 5) Key impacts achieved to date. Include project title, site PIs, operations partner(s) including points of contact, implementation sites (including number of sites, names and locations, and type of facility), and # of Veterans served/providers trained at each implementation site.
In addition to an overall abstract, for each project within the Program, please include the following:
A. Project Goals and Alignment with VA Priorities: Describe Program goals and how each goal aligns with one or more VA priorities (Greater Choice for Veterans, Modernize Our Systems, Focus Resources More Efficiently, Improve Timeliness of Services, Suicide Prevention) and achieves one or more QUERI Strategic Goals (Rapidly translate research findings into practice, Increase impact through partnerships/evaluation/communication, Promote implementation science)
B. Key Tasks Completed: Describe methods used, data collected, tasks completed, and products developed, to date. If applicable, describe the use of randomized or stepped-wedge designs (per VHA and OMB policy recommendations.)
C. Implementation Core: Briefly describe the core implementation strategy or strategies used in this project, including specific components, and any tools or methods developed to operationalize the strategies, and their anticipated or realized impact on VA and Veteran care, including the number of additional providers using tool/method in routine practice and number of patients served by applying the implementation tool or method.
D. Impacts on VA Healthcare
· Describe the impacts of your project in the following three areas, where applicable, and include number and names of implementation sites and type of facility, # of Veterans served at each implementation site, # of providers trained, and other evidence of impact and spread. Explain the timeline of completion for each impact. (e.g., In FY16, the telehealth outreach program was implemented at 4 community based outpatient clinics. During FY17, the telehealth outreach program was expanded to 2 more clinics, and by the end of FY18, we anticipate implementation at 2 more clinics for a total of 8 clinics by the end of FY18.)
1. Assessed a quality improvement intervention (e.g., Demonstrated that a decision support tool improved statin prescribing by 10%.)
2. Successful implementation of a proven program (Include # sites involved, # providers trained in program, and # patients receiving program, e.g., Implemented personalized weight management program in 6 sites among 18 providers with 500 patients receiving the program.)
3. Impact of implementation on quality outcomes, costs, patient experience, and/or provider engagement. (e.g., Documented that rollout of eConsults reduced wait time for consults by an average of 10%.)
E. Impacts on VA Policy
· List briefings or testimonies with VA national leadership or other national leaders with decision-making or financial authority in which evaluation results or methods were discussed and any publications in journals or major media outlets.
· Provide evidence of specific initiatives or changes to VA national or regional policy or clinical practice resulting from or shaped by project findings.
· Describe any new projects or analyses launched or existing projects/analyses expanded in direct response to a specific policy or clinical question from VA national leadership during the course of the Program.
F. Partner Resources: Describe additional resources provided by operational partners, including additional funding above and beyond QUERI funding, as well as data sources, provider networks, and personnel FTE effort donated. Include an estimate of unspent funds (if any) at the end of the FY.
G. Planned key tasks, deliverables and seminars: Include a bulleted list of anticipated key tasks and planned manuscripts, presentations, toolkits, manuals, etc.
Additional Implementation Core activities, Bibliography, Strategic Advisory Committee List, and an optional Appendix can be included at the end of the report.
Implementation Core: Include any implementation core activities that are not related to specific projects in this section. Summarize the core implementation strategies used in this project, including specific components, and any tools or methods developed to operationalize the strategies, and their anticipated or realized impact on VA and Veteran care, including the number of additional providers using tool/method in routine practice and the number of patients served by applying the implementation tool or method.
· List all implementation methods, tools, or strategies developed, to date.
· Provide specific evidence that implementation methods, tools, or strategies were adopted by VA facilities or the national program office.
Bibliography: List of publications, presentations, and dissemination on major social media outlets directly resulting from QUERI-funded work for your Program. Include toolkits, manuals, and other products (e.g., software, websites, directives, etc.). Citations are entered using the ART Citation Manager (ACM) application on the ART Website. For entering a citation, the first step is to choose the citation type (e.g., journal article, center product), then the user either downloads the information from PubMed or adds it manually. The user then needs to link a citation author to the Program funding number. Citations are linked to the overall QUERI number and not individual projects within a QUERI Program. The Bibliography does not count towards the 10-page limit and should include everything resulting from your project to date.
QUERI Program Strategic Advisory Group List: List all members of your strategic advisory group, including their full name, degrees, job title, and role on the committee (e.g., operations, Veteran perspective)
Quad Chart: Please make one PowerPoint slide that succinctly describes your project goals and their linkage to VA national priorities, overall study approach, individual projects, and key innovations & impacts on VA healthcare & policy, to date. The Quad Chart is expected to briefly inform a non-technical audience about the design and merit of the work. Please use the Quad Chart template below. To add text, click on View and then Slide Master. The Quad Chart does not count towards the 10-page limit.
Optional Appendix: You can upload up to 10 pages of supplementary materials, such as presentations to leadership, policy briefs, infographics, list of honors/awards given to QUERI investigators, etc. The Optional Appendix does not count towards the 10-page limit.
5 VA Priorities
1. Greater Choice for Veterans
• Redesign the 40/30 rule
• Build a high-performing, integrated network of care
• Empower Veterans through transparency of information
2. Modernize Our Systems
• Infrastructure improvements and streamlining services
• EMR interoperability & IT modernization
3. Focus Resources More Efficiently
• Strengthening of foundational services in VA
• VA/DOD/Community coordination
• Deliver on accountability & effective management practices
4. Improve Timeliness of Services
• Access to care and wait times
• Decisions on appeals
• Performance on disability claims
5. Suicide Prevention
• Getting to zero
3 QUERI Strategic Goals
1. Translate research into practice
2. Increase impact through partnerships
3. Promote implementation science