Minnesota Hospital Association

Newsroom

August 29, 2016

MHA Newsline: Aug. 29, 2016

In this issue 

Ron Osladil of Essentia Health-Sandstone honored with MHA Trustee of the Year Award

Ron Osladil, trustee, Essentia Health-Sandstone received the Minnesota Hospital Association (MHA) Trustee of the Year Award, which honors a hospital leader who has contributed significantly to the health of the community by providing leadership and guidance to the hospital or health system board.   

Osladil has spent 20 years as a dedicated board trustee of Sandstone’s hospital and nursing home, attending many MHA trustee conferences. For the past 10 years, he has served as board chair for the North Pine Area Hospital District.   

With a soft-spoken and hard-listening personality and leadership style, when Osladil offers his thoughts and opinions, other board members offer their full attention and regard. His style guided the North Pine Area District Hospital Board through a thoughtful new campus feasibility process culminating with the creation of the new Pine Healthcare Campus at Sandstone’s I-35 exit, in partnership with Essentia Health, Gateway Family Health Clinic, Thrifty White Pharmacy and Golden Horizons Senior Care Community.   

Osladil demonstrates selfless devotion to all the citizens of his community and hospital district. His decades of dedication have yielded valuable contributions to high-quality hospital governance and a healthier community.   

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

Hospitals recognized for high flu vaccination rates among staff

The Minnesota Department of Health’s (MDH) FluSafe program celebrated its sixth year with 91 percent of participating hospitals and nursing homes receiving a blue, red or white ribbon for their efforts to vaccinate health care workers against flu.   

For the 2015-16 season, 153 facilities participated. Of the 139 facilities that earned ribbons, 63 reached vaccination levels of 90 percent or greater, earning blue ribbons; 47 were in the 80-89 percent range, earning red ribbons; and 29 reached 70-79 percent, earning white ribbons.      

The FluSafe program aims to get all health care workers, except those with medical exemptions, at hospitals and nursing homes in Minnesota vaccinated against influenza each season. Anyone can get very sick from the flu, including people who are otherwise healthy. Unvaccinated health care workers can potentially pass highly contagious influenza to their patients, many of whom are at high risk for complications of influenza. Vaccination helps protect health care workers, their families and their patients.   

A list of MHA members earning blue, red and white ribbons can be found on the MHA website. More information on the FluSafe program is available on the MDH website. FluSafe registration for the 2016-17 season opens Sept. 1. With questions, contact MDH’s FluSafe Team at [email protected] or 651-201-4629. return to top   

CDC publishes new Zika virus key considerations

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has published a new key considerations document on the Zika virus to help hospitals and health systems prepare for patients seeking a diagnosis and/or symptom management.   

The document provides nine recommendations for hospitals and health systems to implement, including: 

  • Know the clinical manifestation of Zika virus infection and how to access information about areas with active transmission. 
  • Assess all pregnant women for possible Zika virus exposure and evaluate for signs and symptoms of Zika virus disease at every clinical encounter. 
  • Advise pregnant women about how to prevent sexual transmission of Zika during pregnancy.  
  • Discuss preventive measures with patients and families. 
  • Follow the CDC’s Standard Precautions for all patient care. 
  • Be aware of the requirement for Standard Precautions to be used for labor and delivery care. 
  • Provide a link to the CDC’s Zika website on internal and external hospital websites. 
  • Report suspected cases to state or local health departments to facilitate diagnosis. 
  • Report all pregnant women with laboratory evidence of possible Zika virus infection, with or without symptoms, as well as infants born to these women, to state, tribal, territorial or local health department officials for enrollment in the U.S. Zika Pregnancy

The CDC continues to evaluate cases of Zika in the United States and U.S. territories and updates guidance as new information becomes available. For more information and to access additional resources, visit the CDC’s Zika websitereturn to top   

DHS to reprocess SFY2016/17 claims for CAHs

The Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) is planning to reprocess Medicaid fee-for-service claims for critical access hospitals (CAHs) to account for the legislated inpatient rate rebasing plan that was passed in 2015. The anticipated updates will show in the Sept. 6 payment warrant. Hospital chief financial officers were sent anticipated payment impacts last week from DHS containing estimated gross amounts of additional amounts to be paid to the hospital or amounts owed to the DHS. Interim rates have been in effect since the July 1, 2015 implementation. The payment years are based on state fiscal years beginning July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2016 (SFY16) and July 1, 2016 through current (SFY 2017). SFY 2017 payments are increased 3 percent to account for inflation.   

In addition, updated outpatient cost-to-charge ratios were provided to reflect the basis for FY2016 and FY2017 payment rates. These rates are based on each hospital’s most recently filed Medicare Cost Report and are implemented based on each hospital’s fiscal year end.   

DHS anticipates implementing the rebased inpatient payment rates for non CAHs in December. With questions, contact Joe Schindler, vice president of finance, MHA, 651-659-1415. return to top   

New educational videos for board meetings available on MHA’s website

MHA has developed a series of board education videos designed as short introductions on specific health care topics to be shared during hospitals’ board meetings or for individual use. MHA recently filmed seven new videos. These videos, as well as previously recorded videos, are available on MHA’s website. Topics and speakers include:  

  • 2016 Statewide Summary of MHA Workforce Data 
    • Mark Sonneborn, vice president, health information and analytics, MHA  
  • MHA Quality Improvement Process 
    • Rahul Koranne, M.D., MBA, FACP, senior vice president, clinical affairs and chief medical officer, MHA   
  • The 2016 Legislative Session in Review and 2017 Session Preview 
    • Mary Krinkie, vice president, government relations, MHA   
  • 2016 Election Preview and Tips for Advocacy 
    • Mary Krinkie, vice president, government relations, MHA   
  • MACRA: The Impact on Provider Payment 
    • Matthew Anderson, J.D., senior vice president, policy and strategy, MHA   
  • Presenting the Business Case for Patient Safety: Professional Liability Claim Analysis 
    • Annette Burke, RN, BSN, MJ, CPHRM, risk control consultant, CNA, Health Care Segment, Bloomington, MN   
  • Federal Update 
    • Ben Peltier, J.D., vice president, legal services and federal relations, MHA 

If you find other topics that you would like MHA to explore, please contact Peggy Westby, MHA vice president of education and member services, 651-603-3518. MHA plans to add additional videos at least once a year. return to top   

Thank you to Annual Meeting sponsors

MHA’s Annual Meeting is scheduled for Sept. 21-23 at Madden’s on Gull Lake in Brainerd. For more information, download the conference brochure. To register, visit MHA’s website, log in, click “Calendar of Events” and select the program title to register.   

Many key sponsors have already committed to helping MHA deliver a high-quality program. MHA would like to thank the following sponsors for their generosity and continued commitment to Minnesota health care. For more information about sponsorships, contact Cari Kronschnable, clerical/program coordinator, MHA, 651-659-1428.   

Gold Sponsors 

  • CliftonLarsonAllen LLP 
  • MMIC Group 
  • SM US LLP   

Silver Sponsors 

  • Dougherty & Company LLC 
  • Eide Bailly LLP 
  • Hunt Electric Corporation 
  • Kraus-Anderson Construction Company 
  • Life Link III 
  • McGough Construction 
  • Mortenson Construction 
  • NXC Imaging 
  • PNC Bank 
  • Ryan Companies U.S. Inc. 
  • Stinson Leonard Street LLP 
  • Witt/Kieffer   

Bronze Sponsors 

  • Boldt Construction 
  • Delta Medical Systems 
  • Knutson Construction 
  • Medical Information Technology, Inc. (MEDITECH) 
  • Sunovion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. 

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