Florida Hospitals Payments Penalized for Hospital-Acquired Conditions

Hospitals have been closely scrutinized as part of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which includes the Hospital-Acquired Condition (HAC) Reduction Program.

Beginning in fiscal year 2015, the program directed by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) reduces hospital payments by 1 percent for facilities that rank amongst the lowest performing 25 percent with respect to specific HACs.

The program's specific patient safety measures concern the following healthcare-associated infections (HAIs):

• Central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI);
• Catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI);
• Surgical site infections (colon surgeries and abdominal hysterectomies) (2016 addition);
• Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) (2017 addition); and
• Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) (2017 addition).

According to a Miami Herald report, 758 hospitals nationwide will be subjected to a 1 percent reduction in their Medicare payments for the federal fiscal year that runs through September 2016 (in fiscal year 2015, 724 hospitals were subject to a payment reduction). This includes seven South Florida hospitals.

While the goal of this program, including the reduction of payments, is to create improvement in patient safety and quality, hospitals that treat the sickest and therefore the riskiest patients will be penalized as an unintended consequence. The public needs to be cautious when interpreting the information while bearing in mind that hospitals are making the effort to reduce HAIs and progress occurs over time.

It is imperative for hospitals to remain vigilant in their efforts to prevent and reduce HACs and HAIs. These efforts should include use of an infection prevention risk assessment, conducting ongoing infection control education and always following proper safety guidelines and recommendations.

 

Phenelle Segal
Dec 21, 2015

0

► Read More

Hand Hygiene: Are We Still Failing in Healthcare Facilities?

The Leapfrog Group, an advocate of transparency in quality and safety of care in U.S. hospitals, requests that adult general acute care and pediatric hospitals voluntarily complete a survey that will result in data reported publicly on issues that concern healthcare purchasers and consumers. The reported data includes hospital-acquired infections.

Leapfrog includes measures that are aligned with and endorsed by the National Quality Forum (NQF) as well as the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and The Joint Commission.

Several studies relating to hand-hygiene practices of clinicians show varied results. Consequently, Leapfrog asks hospitals to report on the availability of in-place hospital policies and accountability requirements necessary to achieve overall compliance.

Leapfrog developed 10 recommended "safe practices" for the purpose of effective hand hygiene, including hospital-wide education, report/record keeping and submission to relevant hospital committees and board of directors, and policy and procedure implementation.

The results of the 2014 study (pdf) reveal that while progress is being made in the hand-hygiene compliance arena, hospitals still have a way to go despite an increase in the percentage of hospitals meeting all 10 of Leapfrog’s hand-hygiene practices. In 2013, 69% of hospitals reportedly met all 10 practices, while in 2014, that number was 77%. Amongst other data, the study showed that urban hospitals outshine rural facilities.

The data also showed that Florida was one of the top performing states in the country. The top five states were:
1. Oregon (with 100% of hospitals complying with handwashing regulations)
2. New Jersey (94%)
3. Florida (93%)
3.  Nevada (93%)
5.  Tennessee (90%)

The bottom five states were:
50. Wyoming (44%)
50. Wisconsin (45%)
48. Arizona (50%)
48. New Mexico (50%)
46. Missouri (59%)

Hospitals are encouraged to continue striving towards 100% hand-hygiene compliance as the nation works together to prevent harm, including death from hospital-acquired infections.

Phenelle Segal
Jun 18, 2015

0

► Read More

Infection Control Consultant Phenelle Segal to Present at 2015 Florida Society of Ambulatory Surgical Centers Conference

Phenelle Segal, RN, CIC, President of Infection Control Consulting Services (ICCS), will be presenting a session at the 2015 Florida Society of Ambulatory Surgical Centers (FSASC) Quality and Risk Management Conference in Orlando on April 9, 2015.

The presentation will focus on ambulatory surgery center (ASC) infection prevention processes and how they tie into the Quality Assurance Performance Improvement (QAPI). With the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid (CMS) stepping up its efforts to enhance patient safety, hospitals and ASCs are mandated to develop QAPI programs as well as infection prevention strategies to ensure healthcare-associated infections are prevented to the best of the facilities efforts.

Phenelle is a nationally renowned presenter who specializes in providing a variety of services to the ASC sector, including on-site visits with detailed reports of findings and suggestions for improvement.

In addition, ICCS provides written infection prevention programs including risk assessments, goals and objectives, and quality measures. Educational programs in the form of teleconferences and webinars are also provided to clients. Contact ICCS today.

Phenelle Segal
Mar 2, 2015

0

► Read More

New Blog on Florida Infection Control and Prevention Launches

Infection Control Consulting Services (ICCS) is proud to announce the launch of a new blog focused on infection control and prevention for healthcare providers in Florida.

ICCS is a nationally recognized infection control consulting company based in Florida that provides services to hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, physician practices, nursing homes, dental/oral surgery practices and other providers.

These services are available throughout Florida and neighboring states. They include the following:

• On-site facility assessment visits, complete with detailed reports of findings, suggestions and guidance for improvement
• Development of customized infection prevention programs
• Assistance with accreditation and regulatory requirements including preparation of and assistance with corrective plans of action (CMS, The Joint Commission, AAAHC)
• Risk assessment and risk reduction strategies
• On-site, web-based and/or audio-based educational programs

ICCS was founded by Phenelle Segal, a registered nurse who is certified in infection control and has more than 30 years of experience in infection prevention and control. She is a regular presenter at local and national conferences, and frequently interviewed by local and national media including CBS 12 News, ABC News 25, KDKA-CBS radio, Infection Control Today, Becker's Infection Control and Clinical Quality, Long-Term Living and Outpatient Surgery Magazine.

Phenelle Segal
Nov 17, 2014

0

► Read More