QIO News Posts
Limited Health Literacy a Barrier to Effective Heart Disease Treatment
On June 4, News Medical reported that limited health literacy is a major barrier keeping people from achieving good cardiovascular health or getting the most from their treatment for heart attacks, heart failure, strokes and other cardiovascular diseases, according to...
Sepsis: An Under-Recognized Mass Killer
Sepsis is a life-threatening complication of an infectious process that without rapid diagnosis and treatment can quickly progress to tissue damage, organ failure and death. 258,000 Americans die each year from sepsis. Alarmingly, mortality increases 8 percent with...
New Colorectal Cancer Screening Recommendation Issued
The American Cancer Society (ACS) recently released a new colorectal cancer screening guideline, published in CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians. The new guideline recommends that adults at average risk for colorectal cancer start regular...
Pharmacy Point-of Care Testing Impacts Community Health
Shane’s Pharmacy in Fort Pierre, SD, recently implemented in-pharmacy rapid strep and influenza testing allowing patients to receive results and necessary medications at one location within minutes. “Pharmacy point-of-care testing like this is less expensive, faster,...
Great Plains QIN Leadership Supporting Growth and Change
As the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Quality Innovation Network/Quality Improvement Organization (QIN-QIO) representing Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota, engaging in growth and change is an expectation for Great Plains QIN. Established in...
New Leadership Team Rolls Up Sleeves to Exceed Composite Score Goal
Nursing homes across the country receive a Nursing Home Quality Measure Composite Score derived from 13 Long-Stay Quality Measures. The composite score monitors quality from a systems view and serves a guide to identify areas for quality improvement change. The...
Study: Inappropriate or Omitted Drugs Common at Discharge for Older Adults
Medscape recently reported that 83.8 percent of older patients receive at least one potentially inappropriate medication (PIM) or have a potential prescribing omission (PPO) at the time of discharge, according to a study published in the British Journal of Clinical...
Toolkits Support Pharmacists Central Role in Health Management
Whether swinging through the drive-through or stopping by the pharmacy counter, individuals with prescriptions for managing a chronic health issue are in regular contact with their pharmacist. Medication consumers rely on these healthcare professionals to answer...
Sepsis Alliance Launches Network to Improve Treatment for Sepsis
In the United States, sepsis affects more than 1.7 million people and takes 270,000 lives each year. Sepsis is the body’s overwhelming response to infection, which can lead to tissue damage, organ failure, amputations and death. Sepsis Alliance, the nation’s...
Are YOU at Risk? Signs and Symptoms of a Stroke
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), stroke kills almost 130,000 of the 800,000 Americans who die of cardiovascular disease each year—that’s 1 in every 19 deaths from all causes. Anyone, including children, can have a stroke. Every year,...