Guide My Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Tool
Guide My PPE is designed to give care providers illustrated guidance for donning and doffing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Developed by the National Emerging Special Pathogen Training and Education Center (NETEC), in partnership with Emory Visual Medical...
North Dakota ONE Rx Program Featured on National Community of Practice Call
Jayme Steig, PharmD, RPh; Great Plains Quality Innovation Network Quality Improvement Advisor was selected to present on a national community of practice call to provide an overview of the ONE Rx program. The presentation took place on March 23. The Opioid and...
Forgone Care During the Pandemic
According to a recent CMS survey, many Medicare beneficiaries reported forgoing non-COVID-19 care, such as regular check-ups, medical screenings and other vaccinations, such as influenza and pneumococcal. While the COVID-19 pandemic has caused healthcare providers to...
Brand New! CDC COVID-19 Vaccine Webinar Series
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has designed a new mini-webinar series addressing different topics related to COVID-19 vaccination. Each webinar is approximately 15 minutes and offers Continuing Education (CE). CDC’s first two webinars are available...
COVID-19 Safety Training for Direct Care Workers
With funding from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), The University of Southern Maine’s Cutler Institute has developed a no-cost, web-based COVID-19 safety training for direct care workers. The training focuses on the safety of the worker and...
Webinar: COVID-19 Vaccine and What Healthcare Professionals Need to Know | March 30
Tuesday, March 30 | 12 p.m. – 1 p.m. CT Hosted by North Dakota State University (NDSU) and the North Dakota Department of Health (NDDoH). Access the webinar via the Zoom link: https://ndsu.zoom.us/j/99305335628 All healthcare professionals and the public are invited....
Best Practice Briefs: Chronic Disease Prevention and Management
Register and attend the upcoming Best Practice Brief hosted by Great Plains Quality Innovation Network, in partnership with the South Dakota Foundation for Medical Care. Best Practice Briefs are 20-minute webinars highlighting successful system and policy change for...
COVID-19 Vaccine Education for North Dakota Long-Term Care Staff
The Center for Immunization Research and Education (CIRE) in the Department of Public Health at North Dakota State University (NDSU) is working with the North Dakota Department of Health to develop education which addresses COVID-19 vaccine related concerns and...
Celebrate Public Health Heroes
In the midst of the most challenging public health crisis of a lifetime, recognizing the impact of public health professionals on communities and lives is more important than ever. While these individuals are worthy of daily praise, National Public Health Week sets...
Screen, Test, Refer to Prevent Diabetes
As blood circulates through every major organ, it becomes a key source of information for how well the body is functioning. A routine schedule to screen and test for high blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar levels can help manage, and even prevent, a...
National Health Care Decision Day
“In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes” - Benjamin Franklin. In homage to Benjamin Franklin’s famous quote, National Healthcare Decisions Day (NHDD) has been held the day after the tax deadline (April 16) since 2008. Created to...
What Does Patient Safety Mean to Us?
This week, March 14 - 20, we celebrate Patient Safety Awareness Week, an annual recognition event intended to encourage everyone to learn more about health care safety. During this week, important discussions locally and globally are happening to inspire action to...
Minority Health Vaccine Message Aims to Impact Pandemic Disparity
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a disproportionate impact on racial and minority populations, including American Indian and Alaska Native communities. National Minority Health Month in April raises awareness of health disparities among racial and minority populations....
AHQA Applauds Biden Administration for Passing The American Rescue Plan of 2021
The American Health Quality Association, AHQA, applauds the Biden Administration and Congress for passing the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. This historic bill will deliver resources for the COVID public health response and economic aid to those impacted by the...
CMS Updates Nursing Home Guidance with Revised Visitation Recommendations
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), issued updated guidance today for nursing homes to safely expand visitation options during the COVID-19 pandemic public health emergency...
GPQIN Webinar: Aging and the Impact on Medication Use | March 16, 2021
Changes in how the body functions are clear as individuals increase in age. These changes also impact the effects of medication ranging from common over-the-counter cold medicines to prescriptions used to manage chronic disease and mental health concerns. Previously...
Recommendation to Reality for Chronic Disease Prevention
Changing eating and exercise habits are common lifestyle recommendations for improving health and preventing disease. Too often a health crisis or unexpected chronic disease diagnosis turns these recommendations into medical necessities. Implementing an effective...
Community Health Workers Impact Quality Improvement
Community Health Workers (CHWs) are critical for improving quality improvement initiatives because they provide insight into patient needs and the patient experience. As trusted members of the communities they work in, CHWs see firsthand the gaps that exist in health...
![CMS COVID-19 Office Hours Calls [March – April 2021]](https://greatplainsqin.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/istock-coronavirus-purchased-1280-x-300-1080x300.jpg)
CMS COVID-19 Office Hours Calls [March – April 2021]
CMS hosts varied recurring stakeholder engagement sessions to share information related to the agency’s response to COVID-19. These sessions are open to members of the healthcare community and are intended to provide updates, share best practices among peers, and...
CMS Resources for the Emergency Preparedness (EP) Rule
The pandemic has brought into even sharper focus the importance of updated emergency response plans. CMS has compiled a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) and national resources to assist state survey agencies; state, tribal, regional and local emergency...
Patient Safety Awareness Week: Be informed. Be empowered.
Patient Safety Awareness Week [March 14 - 20, 2021] is observed to acknowledge the need to improve care safety throughout the healthcare system and to celebrate efforts to improve care. Preventing harm in health care is a public health concern. Everyone interacts with...
GPQIN Vaccine-Related Resources & CDC COCA Call on Janssen Vaccine
Visit our new Web page - Vaccinations - for resources on vaccine confidence, handling and storage, billing and coding as well as educational opportunities. Our team is working to identify and showcase tools that will be of value to healthcare providers and community...
UND Geriatric and Age-Friendly ECHO: Advance Care Planning [March 9, 2021]
March 9, 2021 at 12 p.m. CT Presented by: Lindsey Dahl, MD Geriatric Medicine- Internal Medicine, Sanford Health, Fargo, ND Why attend? Because you...
GPQIN Medication Safety Learning and Action Series: Join Us
Medications can be lifesaving treatments that change the world. Unfortunately, if not used properly, medications can also lead to adverse events. In fact, Adverse Drug Events (ADEs) account for over 1 million emergency department visits a year and about 350,000...
AHRQ Chartbook on Patient Safety: A Summary of Trends
This Patient Safety Chartbook is part of a family of documents and tools that support the National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report (QDR). This report, prepared by AHRQ, presents trends for measures related to access to care, affordable care, care...
Social Determinants of Health: Healthy People 2030 Report | Tools and Resources
Social determinants of health (SDOH) are conditions in the places where people live, learn, work, and play that affect a wide range of health risks and outcomes. Healthy People 2030 uses a place-based framework that outlines five key areas of SDOH: Healthcare access...
Register for the 2021 Virtual CMS Quality Conference: March 2 – 3, 2021
Healthcare Innovation During a Time of Disruption | March 2 - 3, 2021 [Virtual CMS National Quality Conference] The 2021 Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Quality Conference will take place virtually March 2-3, 2021. Registration is now open, but...
Great Plains QIN Enlisted to Offer Additional Vaccine Support
The CDC’s data tracker compiles data from healthcare facilities and public health authorities. It updates daily to report the total number of COVID-19 vaccines that have been distributed to each state and the total number each state has administered. North Dakota and...
Resources on Reducing Risk of Cognitive Decline
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is highlighting a number of resources created from partnerships with national organizations on reducing the risk of cognitive decline. They focus on impact or chronic diseases including hypertension and diabetes on...
Medication Adjustments Prevent Harm in Aging Patients
“With age comes wisdom” is a familiar adage. Healthcare professionals recognize age also brings increased risk for adverse drug events and health complications. Medication is a common treatment option, but changes in an aging body can lead to unintended harm from...