Quality

NCP Clinical Practice Guidelines for Quality Palliative Care Systematic Review

Coalition Blog #5 – The National Consensus Project (NCP) Clinical Practice Guidelines for Quality Palliative Care, 4th edition, will be published on October 31, 2018. The new edition provides guidance and aims at improving access to quality palliative care for all people with serious illness, regardless of setting, diagnosis, prognosis, or age. The effort began with … Read moreNCP Clinical Practice Guidelines for Quality Palliative Care Systematic Review

AAHPM, AMGA, and OptumLabs awarded grant funding from AARP

AAHPM, in collaboration with the American Medical Group Association (AMGA) and OptumLabs, has been awarded grant funding from AARP to develop and test new pain treatment and other outcome measures in a “seriously-ill” population as part of the National Quality Forum (NQF’s) Measure Incubator project. The principal investigators and Academy staff are working with OptumLabs’ … Read moreAAHPM, AMGA, and OptumLabs awarded grant funding from AARP

AAHPM and Partners Receive Grant to Fund National Registries Project

Clinical data registries (CDRs) have the potential to demonstrate value and drive measure development within the specialty of hospice and palliative medicine. They also advance Maintenance of Certification and research endeavors and promote national quality improvement. The increasing requirement for quality reporting within value-based payment programs has elevated the need for organized data systems. Physicians … Read moreAAHPM and Partners Receive Grant to Fund National Registries Project

AAHPM Represented at NQF Palliative and End-of-Life Care Meeting

The National Quality Forum (NQF) held an in-person meeting in Washington, DC, May 10-11, 2016, to re-evaluate 16 palliative & end-of-life care performance measures. Information about the measures being evaluated, the NQF process, and the NQF Standing Committee roster can be found on the NQF website.  AAHPM leaders Christine Ritchie, Paul Tatum, Gregg VandeKieft, and … Read moreAAHPM Represented at NQF Palliative and End-of-Life Care Meeting

Findings of first empirical data on contributions of chaplain interventions in palliative care

By Eric J. Hall, president & CEO, HealthCare Chaplaincy Network When the latest Clinical Practice Guidelines for Quality Palliative Care guidelines were announced at last year’s AAHPM annual conference, project co-chair Betty Ferrell, PhD, RN, FAAN, FPCN, research scientist at City of Hope, said, “Quality palliative care includes all eight domains. If you are not … Read moreFindings of first empirical data on contributions of chaplain interventions in palliative care

Final Rule in Regulatory Challenges—How are You Affected?

Larry Beresford A dense, 49-page government document with a mouthful of a title, “Medicare Program; FY 2014 Hospice Wage Index and Payment Rate Update; Hospice Quality Reporting Requirements; and Updates on Payment Reform” was published in the Federal Register on August 7—with huge implications for hospices and their medical directors. This Final Rule does much … Read moreFinal Rule in Regulatory Challenges—How are You Affected?

Quality Matters: A View from the Seat at the Table

On November 29, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) hosted a first-ever Quality Measures Summit to identify a set of cross-cutting quality measures applicable to all patients with cancer, irrespective of diagnosis or place along the disease trajectory. This meeting was in conjunction with the inaugural ASCO Quality Symposium, an educational and scientific meeting … Read moreQuality Matters: A View from the Seat at the Table

Quality Measures─ Where’s the Compassion?

As the field of Hospice and Palliative Medicine grows up and integrates into mainstream medicine, we find ourselves increasingly focused on building the evidence base for our practice and developing quality measures that will drive the best outcomes. That’s a noble endeavor, but as we struggle with the science, we run the risk of losing … Read moreQuality Measures─ Where’s the Compassion?

The Devil Is in the Denominator

To improve quality, whom we measure is as important as what. by Joe Rotella, MD, MBA, FAAHPM The growing awareness in America that our healthcare system is unaffordable and fails to deliver consistent quality has led us to healthcare reform, mandatory quality reporting, pay-for-performance, and Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs). We need good measures of quality … Read moreThe Devil Is in the Denominator

JPSM Call for QI Papers Closes April 15

The Journal of Pain and Symptom Management is pleased to announce a call for papers that report the results of Quality Improvement initiatives in palliative care. This publication of brief reports is a joint project of the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine and the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization. Papers focusing on … Read moreJPSM Call for QI Papers Closes April 15