Minnesota Hospital Association

Newsroom

July 25, 2016

MHA Newsline: July 25, 2016

In this issue 

New Ulm Medical Center honored with MHA Innovation of the Year in Patient Care Award

New Ulm Medical Center received the Minnesota Hospital Association (MHA) 2016 Innovation of the Year in Patient Care Award in the small hospital category, which recognizes hospitals for developing innovative ways to meet the needs of patients and ensure that they are delivering safe and high-quality care.   

New Ulm Medical Center is a collaborative partner, a founding member and the sole outpatient provider of drug court programs for participants in the Brown, Blue Earth and Watonwan county drug courts. One in 12 people experiences addiction to drugs or alcohol. Drug courts have been created to support and improve outcomes for individuals with substance use disorders. In fact, drug courts significantly reduce drug use and crime and are more cost-effective than any other proven criminal justice strategy.   

Since 2005, New Ulm Medical Center has provided treatment services for the drug courts in Blue Earth, Brown and Watonwan counties. Patients attend a group session three times a week where the participants support each other and hold one other accountable in working through stressors in their lives, current and past. Addiction impacts every area of these patients' lives including work, home, relationships, finances, parenting and spirituality. Care team members at New Ulm Medical Center are able to help patients identify new, healthy ways to manage challenges and celebrate successes.   

In addition to facilitating group sessions, the hospital's licensed alcohol and drug counselors collaborate with other organizations to provide a multidisciplinary approach to the support provided to the drug court participants. Working with a collaborative team allows drug court participants to receive well-rounded and all-inclusive assistance and ensures the participant is supported.   

Additional award winners will be profiled in upcoming issues of Newsline. To learn more about the award winners, visit the MHA websitereturn to top   

New Include Always resources available

MHA and the Minnesota Alliance for Patient Safety (MAPS) co-hosted a patient and family engagement (PFE) conference on July 13 and 14 to grow the number of patients and family members partnering with their health care facilities to improve quality of care, safety and patient experience.   

At the event, MAPS launched a new website based on the Include Always model of patient and family engagement. MHA provided funding to MAPS for the development of the website, which features real stories of PFE successes and challenges, a directory of PFE leaders, sample documents and other resources.   

MHA is working through the Partnership for Patients Hospital Engagement Network to help hospitals increase patient and family engagement and to develop and sustain Patient and Family Advisory Committees (PFACs). For more information, contact Joy Benn, quality and patient safety specialist, MHA, 651-659-1441. return to top   

MDH seeks Minnesota Influenza Incidence Surveillance Providers

The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) seeks outpatient clinics to become Minnesota Influenza Incidence Surveillance Providers (MIISP). Participating providers conduct surveillance for respiratory illness in the outpatient setting.   

There are two components of participation. Providers report the number of patient visits with acute respiratory illness (ARI) and total number of patient visits each week on a secure website. They also collect specimens on patients presenting with ARI. These specimens are sent to MDH for viral respiratory testing. Results of these tests will be available to providers approximately two weeks after collection.   

Influenza viruses are constantly evolving and cause substantial illness and death every year. Data collected by MIISP are critical in monitoring the course of influenza virus activity as well as other respiratory illnesses. To learn more, contact Jeff Sanders, MDH, 651-201-5414. return to top   

Simulated Medicare bundled payment program reports sent to members

Medicare’s bundled payments program called Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement (CJR) began April 1 for hospitals in 67 selected areas of the country. Hospitals in Minnesota are not subject to the CJR this year; however, MHA anticipates Medicare will expand the program to include Minnesota hospitals within the next two years.   

To prepare for the day when Minnesota hospitals will be subject to the CJR bundled payments program, MHA sent simulation reports to member hospital chief financial officers to give them a basis for understanding their current financial profiles. The reports provide detailed information about the various Medicare provider payments involved with hip and knee replacements both with the anchor admission and post-acute care up to 90 days, including readmissions, transfers, physician office, home health, durable medical equipment, outpatient, skilled nursing facility and more.    

For more information or to obtain your hospital’s report, contact Joe Schindler, vice president of finance, MHA, 651-659-1415. return to top