In This Issue
Partnership with Qualaris Leads to New Model
U. S. Supreme Court Hears MA Case
Navigator Available to Assist
First Quarter Flash Survey
Cyber Security Program
Updated Core Measures Slides
Regional Health Literacy Meeting
Survey Updates
Committee News
Upcoming Committee Meetings
Past Committee Meetings
Allied Member News
New Allied Members
Other Programs of Interest
Sponsors:
Hospital Council's Partnership with Qualaris Healthcare Solutions, Inc., Leads to Collaborative New Model That Improves Patient Safety
By using a web based audit tool and sharing best practices through specific collaboratives, the region's hospitals are improving healthcare for patients. Approximately 40 of the region's hospitals are using the QualarisAudit tool which is being offered through a partnership between Hospital Council and Qualaris Healthcare Solutions, a Pittsburgh-based health IT company. Qualaris is an Allied Member of Hospital Council and a business partner.
QualarisAudit is a web and mobile software tool that takes any paper audit such as falls prevention, hand hygiene, leadership rounding and other patient safety items and allows the organization to automate it. QualarisAudit then gives the hospital immediate access to the results in an actionable form.
Currently, there are two "collaboratives" Hospital Council members are engaged in: a Falls Prevention Collaborative (improving fall prevention actions for the patient in hospitals) and a Hand Hygeine Collaborative (improving compliance to hand washing protocols by clinical staff in hospitals).
Jane Montgomery, Hospital Council's vice president of Clinical & Quality Services, said both collaboratives are showing excellent results. For example, in November 2014, 68 percent of all audits on Falls Prevention were "defect free." For Hand Hygeine, at the end of November 2014, there was 84 percent compliance overall and five sites achieved more than 90 percent compliance.
Members in the collaboratives can participate in teleconferences to share successful strategies and challenges as they use the audit tool. They also receive benchmarking and best practice reports.
Hospital Council and Qualaris continue to work with hospitals throughout the region. In addition, the two organizations are now developing partnerships with other hospital associations and their members from around the country.
For more information contact Jane Montgomery.
U.S. Supreme Court Hears Case Related to Medical Assistance
Hospital Council Supports the American Hospital Association in Case That Could Impact Medical Assistance Reimbursement in Pennsylvania
The United State Supreme Court heard oral arguments in late January on a case that questions if healthcare providers have the right to sue a state for inadequate reimbursement. This could have an impact on providers in Pennsylvania as well as providers in other states similarly affected.
Hospital Council provided information and support to the American Hospital Association (AHA), which filed an amicus brief in the case with the Federation of American Hospitals. The brief is in support of providers in a suit filed in 2009 against the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare because the state froze reimbursement rates in 2006.
The brief lists several cases in which states have frozen or have offered inadequate reimbursement to providers. Pennsylvania is specifically mentioned regarding the fact that outpatient reimbursement rates for providers have not been increased, with few exceptions, since 1991. Denis Lukes, Hospital Council's chief financial officer and vice president, notes that outpatient reimbursement now covers approximately 30 percent of the actual cost of providing treatment.
In Idaho, a lower court's initial ruling ordered the state to increase reimbursement, which would have cost the state $13 million in fiscal year 2013. Although the Supreme Court ruling relates to providers in the 9th Circuit, the case would set a precedent for other states.
For more information see an article on the topic from the Pittsburgh Post Gazette or the brief filed by the American Hospital Association and the Federation of American Hospitals.
For details on reimbursement contact Denis Lukes.
Hospital Council's Navigator Available to Assist
The open enrollment period for the insurance exchange ends on February 15, 2015. Katie Montgomery, Hospital Council's navigator, is available to assist Hospital Council members with enrollment. Members can also refer consumers with questions about enrollment directly to Katie.
Katie will be available to assist consumers who have had a "life change," such as a divorce or job loss or change, after the open enrollment. Hospital Council's navigator is funded through a grant provided to the Consumer Health Coalition from the Centers for Medicare and Medical Assistance.
During this enrollment period, Hospital Council and the Consumer Health Coalition, along with other partners, have participated in a number of enrollment events throughout the region. Among those events were one at Southwest Regional Medical Center and two at Conemaugh Health System. For Conemaugh Health System, enrollment events were held at the Holiday Inn in Johnstown and also in Spangler and Hastings, Pennsylvania.
For more information or to request enrollment assistance contact Katie Montgomery. For information on Hospital Council's enrollment initiative contact Pat Raffaele.
Results of First Quarter Flash Survey
Hospital Council released its Flash Survey for the first quarter of FY 2015. The survey covered the three months ended on September 30, 2015 and includes data from 58 hospitals.The survey was released to Hospital Council members in January.
Operating margins continue to be weak, but up somewhat from the previous year. Average operating margins for hospitals with less than 100 beds continue to be negative. The operating margin trend over the past few years has led to a decline in capital investment, and much of that investment has been related to electronic medical records.
Expenses continue to be held down and had a slight increase of 1.46 percent over last year. There was an increase in outpatient volume, which may be related to more individuals with healthcare coverage under the Affordable Care Act, although it is too early to note this as a trend. Inpatient volume continues to trend downward.
There was a decline in uncompensated care, however this was related to a limited number of hospitals. It seems unlikely that this is a trend because of the increasing amount of deductibles.
For more information about the Flash Survey contact Denis Lukes.
Cyber Security Program and Webinar
Hospital Council is hosting a follow up program on Cyber Security with Ridge Global Solutions (RGS) on Wednesday, February 25, 2015. This is a follow-up program and meeting based on responses from participants at a meeting held earlier in February. The program will be offered both in person and via webinar from 10 a.m. until noon. Program details and information will be available in the near future. Although the program is free of charge, registration is required. To register, or for further information, contact Monica Palmer.
Updated Core Measure Slides
Hospital Council has updated core measure educational slides according to the specification manual and The Joint Commission. Chief Nursing Officers and members of the Risk/Quality Committee should have received an email with information on how to access the slides on Hospital Council's website. For those members who are Chief Nursing Officers or members of the Risk/Quality Committee who did not receive the email with the link to the slides, contact Jane Montgomery.
Health Literacy Coalition Meeting
Hospital Council members are invited to participate in the Regional Health Literacy Coalition (RHLC) meeting on Wednesday, February 25 from 9 a.m. until 11 a.m. at the Hyatt Place Pittsburgh-North Shore. The meeting is free of charge, including parking and breakfast. RHLC will use a "learning community" format for each meeting this year. This includes a 20-minute presentation from an organization working in each RHLC focus area. In 2015, RHLC's focus areas includes: building community connections, developing provider partnerships and engaging academic institutions to promote health literacy. The program will include small group topic-based discussions and time for networking. To register or for more information contact Kevin Progar.
Hospital Council Survey Update
New Benefits Survey
Cowden & Associates is partnering with Hospital Council to give members the opportunity to participate in a benefits survey. Hospital Council's HR Committee has participated in presentations regarding the survey and has agreed that Hospital Council should offer the survey to members. Participation in the survey and the results are free of charge to Hospital Council members. If 25 or more facilities from Hospital Council's membership participate in the survey. Participating members will receive a Hospital Council only cut of the survey results along with the regional and national survey results. The electronic survey will be launched in the near future and member HR executives will receive a link to the survey. For more information contact Pat Raffaele.
Physician Practice Administrators Compensation Survey
Hospital Council's 2014 Physician Practice Administrator's Compensation Survey was sent to participating members in early February. The survey encompasses 30 positions within hospital-owned physician practices and covers 14 benefit categories. The survey is a joint project of the HR Committee and the Physician Practice Administrator's Committee. For more information about the survey contact Jane Montgomery, Pat Raffaele or Betty Steup.
Benchmark Salary Survey and Management Compensation Survey
The Benchmark Salary Survey and the Management Compensation Survey will be released to participating facilities in the near future. The Benchmark Salary Survey covers approximately 51 positions and has 45 participants. The Benchmark Salary Survey will be released again in July 2015. The Management Compensation Survey, which is released annually, covers 42 positions and has 40 participants. Hospital Council's HR Committee recently formed a work group which reviewed the surveys and offered suggestions for updating the surveys and adding and deleting some positions for the next round of surveys. These suggestions will be reviewed by the full HR Committee and the changes will be incorporated into the July 2015 Benchmark Salary Survey. For more information contact Pat Raffaele or Betty Steup.
Hospital Council Committee News
New Committee for Chief Operating Officers
Hospital Council is forming a new Committee for Chief Operating Officers of its member facilities. The Committee will meet a few times in 2015 and once it is launched, the group will determine if it will meet more often in 2016. The first meeting of the Committee will be held on March 26, 2015 at Hospital Council's Conference Center. More information about the meeting will be sent to Chief Operating Officers in the near future. For more information about the Committee or to express interest in serving on the Committee contact Pat Raffaele.
Special HR Orientation and Survey Meeting for Long Term Care Members
Human Resource Executives from Hospital Council's long term care members are invited to participate in a special orientation to Hospital Council's HR meetings, programs and surveys. The meeting will be held on March 5, 2015, immediately following the HR Committee meeting. The meeting will be held beginning with lunch at 12:30 p.m. at Hospital Council's Conference Center. HR Executives from long term care facilities will receive a separate email invitation to attend both the HR Committee meeting and the HR orientation meeting. The HR Committee meeting will begin at 9:30 a.m. and conclude with a networking lunch at noon. For more information contact Pat Raffaele.
Upcoming Committee Meetings
Compliance Committee
February 13, 2015
The Compliance Committee will meet on February 13, 2015 at Hospital Council's Conference Center from 9:30 a.m. until approximately 1 p.m. Scott Stone, chief information officer for Arnett Carbis Toothman will provide a presentation on "incident response." He will cover several incident response topics including breach determination, policy, documentation to support the process and other related topics. He will also provide information on templates and tools which can be used for incident response. The meeting will also include a discussion on audits, a roundtable discussion and plans for the Health Care Compliance Association regional conference. For more information contact Pat Raffaele.
Practice Administrators Committee
February 19, 2015
The Practice Administrators Committee will meet on Thursday, February 19 at Hospital Council's Conference Center. The meeting will begin at 9:30 a.m. and conclude at noon with a networking lunch. As a follow up to the prior meeting, Christian Urrea, Patient Center Medical Home Coordinator for Vale-U-Health, will be joining the Committee to discuss their journey to patient center medical home certification. Additional agenda items include a discussion of Healthy PA, the new Child Protective Services Law (Act 153) and the MA payment changes. For more information contact Denis Lukes or Jane Montgomery.
Risk/Quality Committee
February 25, 2015
The Risk/Quality Committee will meet on Wednesday, February 25, 2015 at Hospital Council's Conference Center. The meeting will also be connected with participants in the Administrative Conference Room of Penn Highlands Clearfield. The meeting will begin at 9:30 a.m. and conclude at noon. Mike Herd, vice president, Healthcare Science Services of American Technologies, Inc., will present Improving Patient Safety: Using No-Touch Documentation Technologies and Surface Treatments. He will give the Committee an overview of the "no touch" technology available, including nanotechnology, and some recommendations on how to choose the correct product. Additional agenda items include an update on current quality measures, a look at the top 10 hazards for 2015 as noted by the ECRI Institute, a discussion of the recent flu outbreak and recent surveys. For more information contact Jane Montgomery.
HR Committee
March 5, 2015
The HR Committee will meet on March 5, 2015 at Hospital Council's Conference Center. The agenda is under development and members will receive an agenda in the near future. One of the agenda items will be a review of recommendations for updates and changes for the Benchmark Salary Survey and the Management Compensation Survey by the HR Survey Work Group. The HR Committee will discuss those recommendations and any new recommendations will be incorporated into the next round of surveys. The meeting will also include a roundtable discussion and planning for the 2015 Annual Labor Update Conference scheduled for May 8, 2015. For more information contact Pat Raffaele.
HR Orientation for Long Term Care Members
March 5, 2015
Hospital Council will hold an orientation for long term care member HR Executives to the HR Committee, programs, surveys and other HR-related information. The meeting will begin with lunch at 12:30 p.m. and will immediately follow the HR Committee meeting. Long term care member HR executives are invited to participate in both the HR Committee meeting and the Orientation. For more information contact Pat Raffaele.