What’s on the GPQIN Calendar?
The Great Plains Quality Innovation Network offers several educational opportunities for healthcare partners. The topics are diverse; there is something for everyone! We hope you are able to join us.
read more
Nebraska Quality Payment Program Coalition: Part of the Solution
The Quality Payment Program (QPP) began in January 2017 under the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015. The QPP aims to improve health outcomes, promote smarter spending, minimize burden of participation and provide fairness and transparency in...
read more
New Medicare Part D Opioid Overutilization Policies for Prescribers Posted
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently finalized new policies for Medicare drug plans to follow starting on January 1, 2019. A Prescriber’s Guide to the New Medicare Part D Opioid Overutilization Policies for 2019 is one tool CMS is utilizing...
read more
Antibiotic Awareness Week Kick-Off with Dr. Maureen Tierney and Dr. M. Salman Ashraf
November 12 | U.S. Antibiotic Awareness Week #USAAW18 #BeAntibioticsAware Great Plains Quality Innovation Network - Nebraska kicked off Antibiotic Awareness Week by partnering with Nebraska healthcare leaders, Dr. Maureen Tierney and Dr. M. Salman Ashraf, to create an...
read more![Connecting the Dots: Immunizations, Antibiotic Use and Sepsis [Resources You Can Use]](https://i2.wp.com/greatplainsqin.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Chalkboard-teamwork-gears1280x300.jpg?resize=1080%2C300&ssl=1)
Connecting the Dots: Immunizations, Antibiotic Use and Sepsis [Resources You Can Use]
Sepsis is the number one cause for hospital admissions and readmissions in the Great Plains QIN region. However, a knowledge gap exists in understanding how immunizations and proper antibiotic use can impact sepsis. To help bridge that gap, Great Plains QIN created...
read more
Opioid Crisis: From Treatment Option to Public Health Emergency
Epidemic is typically used to describe the widespread impact of an infectious disease instead of a medication treatment option. While pharmaceutical companies reassured providers, the growing number of opioid prescriptions was quietly converting patients into addicts....
read more
CMS Quality Payment Program Updates [Looking Back and Ahead]
CMS Released the Year 1 (2017) Quality Payment Program Performance Data infographic which gives breakdowns on who participated, payment adjustments, as well as mean/median scores. The 2017 performance year for the Quality Payment Program was: The first year of the...
read more
Care Coordination and Medication Safety Resources Refreshed
Care coordination and medication safety continue to be highly discussed topics across communities and the healthcare continuum. For the past 4+ years, the Great Plains Quality Innovation Network (QIN) has brought communities together throughout the states in our...
read more
Know Diabetes by Heart™ National Initiative
Last week the American Diabetes Association and the American Heart Association launched the Know Diabetes by Heart™ initiative. The goal is to raise awareness about the increased risk for cardiovascular disease for patients with type 2 diabetes. The initiative will...
read more
November 15 | Great American Smokeout®
Great American Smokeout ® | November 15, 2018 For more than 40 years, the American Cancer Society has hosted the Great American Smokeout on the third Thursday of November. The Great American Smokeout is an opportunity for smokers to commit to healthy, smoke-free...
read more
Safe Injections: One and Only Campaign
The One & Only Campaign is a public health campaign, led by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Safe Injection Practices Coalition (SIPC), to raise awareness among patients and healthcare providers about safe injection practices. The...
read more
Influenza; Older Adult Patients are at Greater Risk
Influenza is a highly infectious viral illness. It can cause mild to severe illness, and at times can lead to death. Adults age 65 years and older are at greater risk of severe complications from influenza, due to their increased likelihood of having chronic...
read more
Be Antibiotics Aware: Everyone Has a Role to Play
Monday, November 12 kicks-off U.S. Antibiotic Awareness Week (USAAW) As you prepare for the week, we encourage you to check out CDC’s Be Antibiotics Aware partner toolkit, which contains key messages, social media content, graphics and more. Below are some...
read more
New Tool to Help Rural Communities Address the Opioid Epidemic Released
The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) and U.S. Department of Agriculture Assistant to the Secretary for Rural Development unveiled a listing of federal programs that can be used to build resilient communities and address opioid misuse in rural...
read more
#MyHospice: A Program that Works. A Benefit that Matters
Hospice is not a place, but is high-quality care that enables patients and families to focus on living as fully as possible despite a life-limiting illness. Palliative care brings this holistic model of care to people earlier in the course of a serious...
read more
CMS Releases the 2019 Quality Payment Program Final Rule
Changes to the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule and Quality Payment Program will shift clinicians’ time from completing unnecessary paperwork to providing innovative, high-quality patient care. Earlier this week, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid...
read more
Survey Finds Likelihood of a Healthcare-Associated Infection Declines
The New England Journal of Medicine recently published the results of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Healthcare-Associated Infections Prevalence Survey 2015 (2015 HAI Prevalence Survey). The multi-state point prevalence survey set to determine...
read more
Diabetes and Diabetic Retinopathy
Diabetes is a disease that affects the body’s ability to produce or use insulin effectively to control blood sugar (glucose) levels. Although glucose is an important source of energy for the body’s cells, too much glucose in the blood for a long time can cause damage...
read more
What’s on the GPQIN Calendar?
The Great Plains Quality Innovation Network offers several educational opportunities for healthcare partners. The topics are diverse; there is something for everyone! We hope you are able to join us.
read more
Recommendations to Reduce Adverse Drug Events from Anticoagulants During Care Transitions Provided by Expert Coalition
In the November 2018 issue of The Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety, results of an IPRO-convened task force of The New York State Anticoagulation Coalition were published. The article details a list of Requisite Data Elements (RDEs) to adequately...
read more
Champions for Lifestyle Change: Great Plains QIN South Dakota Receives Better Choices, Better Health Award
The passion of the Great Plains Quality Innovation Network (QIN) diabetes care team for teaching proven diabetes self-management education was recognized at the Office for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion meeting on October 17, 2018, with the...
read more
What’s on the GPQIN Calendar?
The Great Plains Quality Innovation Network offers several educational opportunities for healthcare partners. The topics are diverse; there is something for everyone! We hope you are able to join us.
read more
Following Dad’s Example: Everyday Reality of Managing Diabetes Passed Down as a Healthy Lifestyle
Diabetes impacts nearly every decision made by individuals diagnosed with the disease including what to eat, wear and do. This November is American Diabetes Awareness Month and the theme is “Everyday Reality.” According to the American Diabetes Association,...
read more
Norfolk Fire Division Shares Community Partnership Efforts to Reduce Sepsis Deaths
Members of the Norfolk Fire Division recently met with the Quality Innovation Network-National Coordinating Center (QIN-NCC). The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has designated the QIN NCC to provide analytic and technical assistance to the 14...
read more
Roland Receives Legendary Nurse Award
The 2018 Legendary Nurse Awards banquet was held on October 25 in Bismarck, ND, honoring nurses from across the state of North Dakota in several categories. Of the 50 nominations submitted, Great Plains QIN Quality Improvement Specialist, Jean Roland, RN, BSN, CPHQ,...
read more
Gardenside Long-Term Care in Fairbury, Nebraska Identified as a ‘High Performer’
Gardenside Long-Term Care [Fairbury, NE] Identified as a ‘High Performer’ by the Quality Innovation Network National Coordinating Center (QIN-NCC) Gardenside Long-Term Care (LTC) in Fairbury hosted the Great Plains Quality Innovation Network and team members of the...
read more
Webinar Series: The Basics for Achieving Medicare Reimbursement for DSMT (Part II)
Three-Part QIN-QIO Public Sharing Call Series: Going Back to the Basics of Diabetes Self-Management Training (DSMT) Part II: The Basics for Achieving Medicare Reimbursement for Diabetes Self-Management Training Part II: Thursday, November 08, 2018 2:00 – 3:30 PM CT...
read more
Technology Aids in Medication Adherence
The pharmaceutical industry is changing. Changes such as value-based reimbursement, physician shortage, demand for better patient outcomes, rising cost of prescription drugs and the increase in diagnosis of chronic diseases is forcing these changes to occur. It is...
read more
Making the Rounds: Advancing Quality Improvement Efforts during Health Conference Season
Each fall, healthcare professionals in South Dakota trade a day or two of patient rounds and healthcare services for conference sessions and networking. From mid-September well into October, content experts share their insights on a broad range of topics from health...
read more
Solutions for Super Utilizers Needed to Reduce Medical Cost Burden
As year-end approaches, employers and every individual approaching retirement age is carefully considering the impact of rising healthcare costs and insurance premiums. Decisions related to lifestyle, employment and even medication or recommended health treatment are...
read more