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![Spread the Love…Not the Disease](https://greatplainsqin.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Family4-walking1280x300-1080x300.jpg)
Spread the Love…Not the Disease
August is National Immunization Awareness Month (NIAM). NIAM highlights the need for improving national immunization levels and encourages all people to protect their health by getting immunized against infectious diseases. The observance is a great way to promote...
![Toolkit Helps Drive Community Health in Rural Areas](https://greatplainsqin.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/knowledgeIsPower1280x300-1080x300.jpg)
Toolkit Helps Drive Community Health in Rural Areas
The American Hospital Association (AHA) recently released a toolkit to improve community health and patient outreach in rural areas and vulnerable urban areas. Access the toolkit As value-based care continues to take hold, health systems are making more of a concerted...
![Study Shows Lowering Readmission Rates Does Not Reduce Quality or Safety](https://greatplainsqin.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/nurse-woman1280x300-1080x300.jpg)
Study Shows Lowering Readmission Rates Does Not Reduce Quality or Safety
As hospitals continue to lower readmission rates and satisfy new value-based incentives, mortality rates have also dropped, signaling improvement in care quality. A new study published in JAMA analyzed about 5 million Medicare fee-for-service hospitalizations between...
![The Opioid Epidemic – How Does Your State Fare?](https://greatplainsqin.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/USmap-1080x300.jpg)
The Opioid Epidemic – How Does Your State Fare?
A new interactive map from AHRQ allows users to explore state-specific information about opioid-related hospital stays. Users may find, for example: Between 2005 and 2014, the national rate of opioid-related inpatient stays increased 64.1 percent and the national rate...
![GOOD News for Skilled Nursing Facilities](https://greatplainsqin.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/AAnurse-pat1280x300-1080x300.jpg)
GOOD News for Skilled Nursing Facilities
The new payment rule posted Monday by CMS has skilled nursing facilities obtaining a 1% federal payment rise; an increase of $370 million. This increase is for all post-acute providers and was mandated by the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015. The...
![Which Hospital Metrics Should We Give Our Attention?](https://greatplainsqin.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/QualityInfographic2-1280x300-1080x300.jpg)
Which Hospital Metrics Should We Give Our Attention?
There is much data to help patients decide on a hospital. But, which data is valuable and worth your attention? How do we compare two hospitals with different patient demographics in different locations? Are we making fair comparisons? A recent study by health...
![Nebraska Critical Access Hospital Program Receives National Recognition](https://greatplainsqin.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/best-practice-gears1280x300-1080x300.jpg)
Nebraska Critical Access Hospital Program Receives National Recognition
The Critical Access Hospital (CAH) program in Nebraska was recently recognized for outstanding quality performance. Ten states, including Nebraska, were identified as ‘top-performing’ states; others included Wisconsin, Maine, Utah, Minnesota, Illinois and Pennsylvania...
![CDC Reports Half of Americans Have Diabetes or Are at High Risk](https://greatplainsqin.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/teamwork-health1280x300-1080x300.jpg)
CDC Reports Half of Americans Have Diabetes or Are at High Risk
100 million people in the United States have diabetes or prediabetes and this number is growing. The CDC’s Division of Diabetes Translation (DDT) recently released the newest National Diabetes Statistics Report, which highlights current data on diabetes incidence and...
![Preventing Hospitalization, Disease and Death through Vaccines](https://greatplainsqin.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/doc-nurse-greeting-family1280x300-1080x300.jpg)
Preventing Hospitalization, Disease and Death through Vaccines
Every year tens of thousands of adults needlessly suffer, are hospitalized and even die as a result of diseases that could be prevented by vaccines¹. While adults believe immunization is important, a recent national survey showed that most adults are not aware that...
![Home-Based Primary Care – Improving Access, Quality and Satisfaction](https://greatplainsqin.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/couple-discuss-nurse-1080x300.jpg)
Home-Based Primary Care – Improving Access, Quality and Satisfaction
Through implementation of their House Calls Program, Methodist Physician’s Clinic in Omaha, Nebraska set out to help patients access the right care in the right place at the right time -- whether they are at home, at an assisted living or at a Skilled Nursing Facility...