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Region Launches Initiative to Track and Reduce Hospital Readmissions
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Starting today, southeastern Pennsylvania hospitals, physicians, nursing homes, and other caregivers are stepping up collaborative efforts to improve care coordination, keep patients out of the hospital, and hold down health care costs. More than 200 doctors, nurses, quality experts, and other health care professionals shared ways to track and reduce 30-day hospital readmission rates at the kickoff of the Preventing Avoidable Episodes (PAVE) Project at the Union League in Philadelphia. The goal is to reduce readmission rates by 10 percent over the course of the 18-month project. The PAVE Project is part of the Partnership for Patient Care, a multi-year patient safety and quality initiative facilitated by The Health Care Improvement Foundation and supported and funded by Independence Blue Cross and southeastern Pennsylvania hospitals. The Delaware Valley Health Care Council of HAP is providing data collection and reporting for the project. “Coordination and communication are key to preventing avoidable hospital readmissions,” said Kate Flynn, president of the foundation. “After the intensive medical treatment provided during hospital stays, all stakeholders – patients and their families as well as hospital and community caregivers – must do their part so that patients get the recommended follow-up care, continue down the road to better health, and avoid additional hospitalizations if at all possible.” Three project workgroups will study and recommend specific strategies for reducing readmissions. One team will suggest ways to support improved communication among patients’ different caregivers, such as the use of standardized patient information templates for handoffs from one provider to the next. Another team will study the feasibility of using personal health records to provide patients with ongoing accounts of their medical histories. Improved medication management is third area of focus. To assist in monitoring project progress, the Delaware Valley Healthcare Council of HAP is beginning to track hospital readmission rates retroactive to January 2010. “Every readmission prevented represents a patient who was able to grow healthy enough to stay out of the hospital – and that’s the ultimate goal of acute care,” said Kenneth J. Braithwaite II, regional executive of the council. Braithwaite also noted that reducing preventable readmissions reduces health care costs, preserving scarce acute care resources for patients who must be hospitalized. “National health reform contains provisions to encourage lower readmissions, reflecting the importance of both the quality and cost aspects of this issue,” said Braithwaite. In federal fiscal year (FFY) 2013, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will reduce Medicare payments by up to one percent on all Medicare discharges for hospitals with higher than expected 30-day readmission rates for heart attack, heart failure, and pneumonia. This penalty could increase in FFY 2014 and FFY 2015. According to a study of 2003-2004 Medicare claims data published in The New England Journal of Medicine, about one in five Medicare discharges results in a readmission. The Health Care Improvement Foundation (HCIF) is an independent, not-for-profit corporation dedicated to building partnerships for better health care in southeastern Pennsylvania. With a multi-dimensional focus on health care safety – in patient care, environmental practices, and disaster preparedness – HCIF brings together diverse organizations to achieve regional collaboration and improvement. Additional information is available online at
www.hcifonline.org
. Independence Blue Cross is a leading health insurer in southeastern Pennsylvania. Nationwide, Independence Blue Cross and its affiliates provide coverage to nearly 3.3 million people. For more than 70 years, Independence Blue Cross has offered high-quality health care coverage tailored to meet the changing needs of members, employers, and health care professionals. Independence Blue Cross’s HMO and PPO health care plans have consistently received the highest ratings from the National Committee for Quality Assurance. Independence Blue Cross is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. More information about Independence Blue Cross is available at
www.ibx.com
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2010 News Releases
