FAQ on Sequesterian

Additional Sequestration Q&As 
https://www.novitas-solutions.com/sequestration/index.html

Please visit our Sequestration News page for new questions and answers on sequestration, which clarify the point in the claims process when the 2% payment reduction is taken.

JH2 Part A Webinar Handout: "Billing Drugs and Biologicals" - March 28, 2013 (10:00am - 11:00am ET, 9:00am - 10:00am CT) https://www.novitas-solutions.com/calendar/parta/webinar/index.html

Join us as we describe policies related to drugs and biologicals and improve your understanding of stated content related to drugs and biologicals. We will show you how to properly develop claims for submission and remain compliant with the Medicare program.

Use the most of your time!

Get the most out of your travel to Denver and consider arriving a day early for this special workshop on Disaster Recovery and EHR Systems!

Presented by The Colorado Rural Health Center and Data Services for Healthcare (DASH) 

To register click here.

Tuesday April 2, 2013 

10:30 am - 3 pm

Colorado Rural Health Center

3033 S. Parker Road, Suite 606

Aurora, CO 80014

Why your IT staff or leadership MUST attend this workshop: 

• We will present the latest innovations and concepts in developing and deploying an affordable and appropriate disaster recovery plan for your facility 
• Disaster recovery and contingency plan policies and procedures will be reviewed. Every participant will leave with an up to date HIPAA DR and Contingency plan policy and procedure template you can quickly adopt at your facility! 
• Take a virtual tour of a Data Center that would provide the highest level of data security 
• We will facilitate several roundtable discussions with industry experts on solutions for each participant's DR planning issues and concerns 

Additionally we will have the following presentations:

1. Update on what IT staff should do relevant to the recent HIPAA Omnibus Rule
2. Presentation on an innovative solution to internal audit of your EHR, PACS and other systems that create, maintain or store PHI
3. Presentation on Mobile Device Security trends and new solutions

Who should attend:

• Critical Access Hospital IT leadership and staff 
• Rural PPS hospital IT leadership and staff 
• ClinicNet Safety net clinics who have IT staff 
• Federally Qualified Health Centers 

Fee: There is a nominal $25 fee to cover lunch and refreshments. Recognizing the burden attending may pose to our rural facilities DASH is offering a limited number of $200 scholarships to defray travel costs. These will be issued on a first come/first serve basis. Details on signing up for these scholarship will be included on registration forms.

To register click here.

For more information email David Ginsberg, Senior Advisor at dg@coruralhealth.org

Begin Transitioning to ICD-10 in 2013 National Provider Call

On September 5, 2012, CMS published a final rule that delays the ICD-10 compliance date from October 1, 2013 to October 1, 2014. Are you ready to transition to ICD-10? Now is the time to prepare. Join us to learn how to prepare in 2013 for the transition.

CMS Subject matter experts review basic information on the transition to ICD-10 and discuss implementation planning and preparation strategies. A question and answer session follow the presentations.

Thursday, April 18, 2013
1:30 PM - 3:00 PM Eastern Time
Cost: Free 

Target Audience:
Medical coders, physicians, physician office staff, nurses and other non-physician practitioners, provider billing staff, health records staff, vendors, educators, system maintainers, laboratories, and all Medicare FFS providers

Agenda:

• Planning for transition to ICD-10 
• Claims processing 
• National implementation issues 
• National Coverage Decisions 
• Outreach 

Call Materials:
A link to the slide presentation will be posted prior to the call at: http://www.cms.gov/Outreach-and-Education/Outreach/NPC/National-Provider-Calls-and-Events-Items/2013-04-18-Transitioning-to-ICD-10.html

Registration:
To register for a National Provider Call, please visit the CMS Upcoming National Provider Calls webpage. Registration is required. Registration will close at 12:00pm ET on the day of the call, or when available place has been filled. If you would like registration assistance, please contact cms-npc@blhtech.com.

For More Information:
For more information, please visit the CMS ICD-10 website.

Grow Your Own Coders -- Rifle

Meet your coding, reimbursement and compliance goals in 2013.

Topics covered include the following coding manuals:

- 2013 CPT Professional - 2013 HCPCS - 2013 ICD-9 -

These classes are normally offered at over $2,000.00 per person. Save your time and money by attending our three day workshops. It's amazing what you'll learn!

Coding Certification Bootcamp in Rifle, CO.
May 21, 22 & 23, 2013
Grand River Hospital Conference Center/501 Airport Rd, Rifle, CO
Click here to register

Questions? Contact Danette Swanson ds@coruralhealth.org

Registration Assistance: Samantha Hiner at 720.248.2757

National Telenursing Center Seeks National Pilot Sites

In 2012, the Office for Victims of Crime and the National Institute of Justice awarded funds to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH) to develop a national telemedicine center that provides 24/7 access to Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners (SANESs) who will provide guidance and support for clinicians in remote sites conducting forensic evidence collection for sexual assault victims.  MDPH has issues a Request for Response (RFR)  for three sites serving priority populations (rural, tribal and corrections) to partner with the National TeleNursing Center. A fourth site, serving the  military, will be a U.S Navy facility and selected in a separate process.   

If you are interested in responding to this request, please read the RFR at www.comm-pass.com. Follow the instructions below to access the RFR and all associated forms and documents. Please note that this process will work much easier if you have the most recent version of Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox or Safari.

• Go onto the Internet to address: www.comm-pass.com.
• Click on the Solicitations tab.
• Click on Search for a Solicitation.
• Enter 305918 into the Document Number field, then press Search.
• There are 3 Solicitation(s) found that match your search criteria will appear at the top of the screen. Click on this link. 
• Click on the eyeglasses icon on the top line, OPEN. 
• The RFR document is posted on the Specifications tab.

           Caution, never use the Back button in Comm-PASS.

If you have any questions about any of the content in the RFR, you may submit those questions via email to: christine.murphy@state.ma.us .

Colorado Hospital Association’s Denver Career Fair

Take advantage of Colorado Hospital Association’s Denver Career Fair on April 9th! This is a wonderful chance for your clinic or hospital to meet experienced nursing, allied health and home health professionals.

CRHC is offering a special discount on the P&P manual for RHC's.

Do you have an up-to-date Policy and Procedures (P&P) manual?


RHC's must have a current P&P manual that addresses all regulations and outlines how the practice operates and follows the regulations. A variety of RHC P&P manual resources are available including:

A full CMS RHC P&P Manual
Evaluation of current P&P manual
Non-Clinic member of Annual Review committee. CRHC can fulfill the annual non-clinic member role requirement and simultaneously assist the clinic with effectively updating P&P's annually.

For the month of March CRHC will be offering $50.00 off the P&P manual for members. Not a member? Join here. Don't miss out on this opportunity - contact Courtnay Ryan at cr@coruralhealth.org  to order yours today!

RHC Scholarships Available to attend the 2013 Forum!!

The CRHC is excited to offer scholarship opportunities for RHC facilities to help their staff attend the 2013 Forum!

The Forum serves as an essential educational, training, and networking event for all safety net clinics, members of the clinic team, and other interested parties. However, even after paying the registration fee attending the Forum can be a hurdle on its own, with the rising gas prices and hotel fees involved.

So let us help you attend!

Approved staff members can receive up to $500.00 per person to attend The Forum. Please click here for more information on how your clinic can receive funds to attend the Forum 2013. Don’t miss this excellent opportunity!

For more information (including agenda) on the Forum 2013, click here.

If you have any questions about registration, please contact Bridgette Olson at bo@coruralhealth.org.

CAH Swing Bed Webinar Part II

CAH Swing Bed Webinar Part II 

Friday, March 22nd, 11:30-1:00 

Please contact Caleb Siem at cs@coruralhealth.org to register 

Regional CAH Quality Improvement and Patient Advocacy Workshops (Save the Dates) 

Please join us for some focused, hands-on Excel training. Median Line education will be included. Please bring your laptops. Also, Patty Skolnik will be discussing patient advocate issues and provider /patient communication.

• April 23rd Walsenburg 
• April 25th Aurora 
• April 30th Rifle 

Please contact Caleb Siem @ cs@coruralhealth.org for more information

ICD-10: CMS Says Implementation Date Will NOT Be Delayed!

Last week at the Annual HIMSS13 conference in New Orleans, Marilyn Tavenner, Acting CMS Administrator, confirmed that the ICD-10 implementation date of October 1, 2014 will stand!

Providers, practices, hospitals and other healthcare entities need to start their preparation and training efforts NOW!

AHRQ Webinar: Bridging Research With Practice

 The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) is presenting a special Web conference for physician assistants on Tuesday, April 9, 1:00 - 2:00 p.m. EDT. The Effective Health Care (EHC) Program provides a host of evidence-based resources-such as clinician research summaries and continuing education activities-to help clinicians work with their patients make more informed choices about treatments together. Please join co-presenters Peter Kuemmel, PA and Jake Yarborough, a contractor for the AHRQ EHC Program, to learn more about the EHC Program and discuss how physician assistants can use them Program resources and materials in practice. There will also be an opportunity to hear successful practical application of EHC Program resources by other physician assistants and their organizations. To register for this event and receive information to access the Web conference, please contact Karen Costa at karen.costa@ahrq.hhs.gov or 202-729-4129 no later than Tuesday, April 2.

QHi Benchmarking Tool

Quality Health Indicators (QHi) is an online benchmarking tool geared towards Critical Access Hospitals. Currently over 300 hospitals in 16 states are using QHi to benchmark a variety of metrics against peer hospitals. QHi is available to all Colorado CAHs at no charge. QHi will be holding a Back to Basics webinar on Thursday, March 21 from 1:00-2:00 MST where they will review the fundamentals of completing the hospital profile, adding users, selecting measures, and running reports. For more information, contact Caleb Siem at cs@coruralhealth.org.

National Poison Prevention Week

March 17-23 is National Poison Prevention Week, a week dedicated to highlighting the dangers of unintentional poisonings and how to prevent them. Many people think that the HRSA-funded toll-free Poison Help line, 1-800-222-1222, which connects callers to their poison center, is only for emergencies involving kids, but that is not the case. The Poison Help line is a valuable resource for healthcare professionals as well. You can—and should—contact your poison center in non-urgent situations. Here are a few examples of how the trained toxicologists, physicians, nurses, and pharmacists at your local poison center can help you:


Poison control centers can offer continuing medical education and other training on a wide range of topics, including poison management, medication safety, disaster preparedness, and substance abuse.
Poison center specialists can talk with you about emerging hazards so that you feel more confident answering questions.
Your poison center can provide you with locally relevant information, such as what drugs are most commonly abused in your community or where parents can buy children’s products free from certain toxins.



Despite the lifesaving services poison centers have provided for 60 years, public and professional awareness about the availability of poison control resources and the nationwide Poison Help line is essential. Interpretation services are available in over 150 languages. For more information about the Poison Help line and the services that poison centers provide, visit www.PoisonHelp.hrsa.gov, available in English and Spanish. To order Poison Help magnets and stickers, visit http://www.ask.hrsa.gov or call 1-888-ASK-HRSA (275-4772), and indicate a bulk order request.

Post Deployment Care Integration for Rural OEF/OIF/OND Combat Veterans - Webinar

The VHA Office of Rural Health, Rural Health Professions Institute brings you this live broadcast event on Thursday, April 25, 2013, 1:00-2:10 pm ET on caring for today’s retuning combat Veterans. Two highly recognized VHA experts on providing post deployment care to Iraqi and Afghanistan theater combat Veterans will join forces to speak with you about what to expect in the families, communities, and medical practices that embrace our returning warriors (whether it is a VA based practice or a local community provider), as well as how to make the best use of VA resources and supporting programs in caring for their needs. This is a great way to build on your knowledge of a very special patient population, pick up extra CME/CEU, is available for your participation inside or outside the VA firewall, and as always will allow interaction with both of the presenters and with other participants. And of course, at no cost to you. Take a moment right now to register for this broadcast by clicking here to log-in or enroll. If you need any assistance at all in either enrolling with MyVeHU Campus, or registering for the event, please feel free to contact their support team at support@myvehucampus.com.

How Sequestration Will Affect Medicare EHR Incentive Payments

Many of our members have been asking if Sequestration will affect the Medicare EHR incentive payments. In a March 13, 2013 announcement on the CMS EHR Registration and Attestation site CMS states the following:

Medicare payments will be reduced by 2% - Medicare payments will be reduced by 2% as a result of sequestration. This reduction will affect any Medicare EHR Incentive payment made by CMS on or after April 1, 2013. Medicaid payments are exempt from sequestration and as a result Medicaid EHR Incentive Payments will not be reduced.

Regardless of when you submitted your attestation information, if the payment is occurring on or after April 1, 2013 this reduction is in effect.

CRHC offering special discount on the Policy & Procedures Manual!!!

Do you have an up-to-date Policy and Procedures (P&P) manual? 

RHC's must have a current P&P manual that addresses all regulations and outlines how the practice operates and follows the regulations. A variety of RHC P&P manual resources are available including: 

• A full CMS RHC P&P Manual 
• Evaluation of current P&P manual 
• Non-Clinic member of Annual Review committee. CRHC can fulfill the annual non-clinic member role requirement and simultaneously assist the clinic with effectively updating P&P's annually. 

For the month of March CRHC will be offering $50.00 off the P&P manual for members. Not a member? Join here. Don't miss out on this opportunity - contact Courtnay Ryan to order yours today!

Are you attending The Forum this April?

Get the most out of your travel to Denver and consider arriving a day early for this special workshop on Disaster Recovery and EHR Systems!

Presented by The Colorado Rural Health Center and Data Services for Healthcare (DASH) 

To register click here.

Tuesday April 2, 2013 

10:30 am - 3 pm

Colorado Rural Health Center

3033 S. Parker Road, Suite 606

Aurora, CO 80014

Why your IT staff or leadership MUST attend this workshop: 

• We will present the latest innovations and concepts in developing and deploying an affordable and appropriate disaster recovery plan for your facility 
• Disaster recovery and contingency plan policies and procedures will be reviewed. Every participant will leave with an up to date HIPAA DR and Contingency plan policy and procedure template you can quickly adopt at your facility! 
• Take a virtual tour of a Data Center that would provide the highest level of data security 
• We will facilitate several roundtable discussions with industry experts on solutions for each participant's DR planning issues and concerns 

Additionally we will have the following presentations:

1. Update on what IT staff should do relevant to the recent HIPAA Omnibus Rule
2. Presentation on an innovative solution to internal audit of your EHR, PACS and other systems that create, maintain or store PHI
3. Presentation on Mobile Device Security trends and new solutions

Who should attend:

• Critical Access Hospital IT leadership and staff 
• Rural PPS hospital IT leadership and staff 
• ClinicNet Safety net clinics who have IT staff 
• Federally Qualified Health Centers 

Fee: There is a nominal $25 fee to cover lunch and refreshments. Recognizing the burden attending may pose to our rural facilities DASH is offering a limited number of $200 scholarships to defray travel costs. These will be issued on a first come/first serve basis. Details on signing up for these scholarship will be included on registration forms.

To register click here.

For more information email David Ginsberg, Senior Advisor at dg@coruralhealth.org

The Forum is the Place To Be!

The CRHC is excited to offer scholarship opportunities for RHC facilities to help their staff attend the 2013 Forum!

The Forum serves as an essential educational, training, and networking event for all safety net clinics, members of the clinic team, and other interested parties. However, even after paying the registration fee attending the Forum can be a hurdle on its own, with the rising gas prices and hotel fees involved.

So let us help you attend!

Approved staff members can receive up to $500.00 per person to attend The Forum. Please click here for more information on how your clinic can receive funds to attend the Forum 2013. Don’t miss this excellent opportunity!

For more information (including agenda) on the Forum 2013, click here.

If you have any questions about registration, please contact Bridgette Olson at bo@coruralhealth.org.

Treatment of Complex and High Risk Chronic Pain: A Rehabilitation Approach

Treatment of Complex and High Risk Chronic Pain: A Rehabilitation Approach

March 27, 2013 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm ET

Prescribers’ Clinical Support System for Opioid Therapies (PCSS-O) is a three year grant funded by Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA),Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT). It is a collaborative project led by American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry (AAAP) with: American Dental Association (ADA), American Medical Association (AMA), American Osteopathic Academy of Addiction Medicine (AOAAM), American Psychiatric Association (APA), American Society for Pain Management Nursing (ASPMN), and International Nurses Society on Addictions (IntNSA). These organizations are providing training and education on the safe and effective prescribing of opioid medications in the treatment of pain and/or opioid addiction.

Webinar Information:

A webinar offered by American Society for Pain Management Nursing (ASPMN).

Objectives:
1. Define factors contributing to increased complexity and/or risk in patients with chronic pain
2. Explain the limitation of opioids as unimodal therapy for chronic pain
3. Describe a multimodal rehabilitation approach in addressing factors of high risk or complex chronic pain

Date: March 27, 2013
Speaker: Carolyn Buesgens, MA, RN-BC, ANP-BC
Nurse Practitioner Minneapolis VA Chronic Pain Consult Service Clinical Champion, OPCC&CT
Time: 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm ET

To Register: https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/440792990

Take the First Step Down the ICD-10 Pathway - Webinar

There is a pathway through the ICD-10 maze and it begins by engaging with physicians and staff to build an awareness of what ICD-10 is. If you haven't begun planning you must join us on Tuesday, March 19th at noon and take the first step down the path towards a successful transition!

The ICD-10 Coalition is hosting the first in a series of webinars to help physicians make a successful transition to ICD-10 in 2014. Don't be fooled by the 2014 date. A lot of work is required to navigate this maze and the March 19 webinar-Take the First Step Down the ICD-10 Pathway- will help you get off on the right foot.

If you have already registered and received a confirmation email then you are good to go! If you haven't, then act now as space is limited.

If your office is near Parker Adventist Hospital then consider joining your friends in the Pine All room to participate in the webinar as a group. Bring your lunch and take advantage of the opportunity to network and discuss ICD-10. Sign up to participate at the Parker Adventist site by clicking here to send an email to Marilyn Rissmiller. You don't have to sign up individually using the "register now" button.

Any other group that wants to set up a satellite location for the webinar series should also send Marilyn an email.

Dolphins for Nurses - A Campaign for Nurses in Need

Nurses House is campaigning during Nurses Week to raise funds for nurses in need. It involves nurses selling gold and blue dolphins for $1 or $5 donations to raise funds for their colleagues. It can easily be worked into existing Nurses Week activities and is a great way to celebrate nurses!

Last year was the first year Nurses House ran this campaign and although they only had a few hospitals participate, they were able to raise over $17,000 and got national exposure with a sponsorship by Johnson & Johnson. They hope to get even more national exposure this year and really spread awareness about Nurses House while raising funds for nurses in need.

Nurses House is the only national 501(3)3 non-profit organization assisting registered professional nurses in need due to illness, injury, disability or other dire circumstance.

Please click here for a flyer on the campaign, and click here for a Press Release. For more information please visit their website at www.nurseshouse.org or contact:

Stephanie Dague
Director of Development
Nurses House, Inc.
2113 Western Ave.
Guilderland, NY 12084
(518)456-7858x27

CPNTP Training

Bridging Theory and Practice: Applying Health Behavior Change Theories to Patient Navigation 

April 16-17, 2013 Denver, CO 

This two-day course is designed for Patient Navigators who assist patients diagnosed with or at risk for chronic diseases such as cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular and pulmonary disease. The training provides participants with a working knowledge of several behavioral and social science theories, the determinants of risk from those theories, and links them to prevention interventions in an interactive and applied manner. The course includes exercises in understanding the factors that influence behavior; an overview of the different levels of interventions; the introduction of a framework to link theory, behavioral determinants and interventions; and small group work to strengthen skills learned in the course. 

(This course is considered a ‘Level 2, Advanced Course’ in the course series of the Colorado Patient Navigator Training Program) 

Follow this link to register - http://denverptc.org/class_information.html?id=785

Webinar by AgriSafe Network

Please Join us for a FREE Webinar on 

Thursday, March 28, 2013 at 12:00 – 1:00 PM, CDT 

Health Literacy and Rural Residence: Identifying and Addressing Needs 

Space is limited.

Reserve your Webinar seat now at:
https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/700264062 

 After registering you will receive a confirmation about joining the Webinar.

Presenter: Julie Halverson, MS, MA, Assistant Researcher, School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Wisconsin Comprehensive Cancer Center

OBJECTIVES:
1. Define health literacy
2. Identify health literacy needs and barriers among a sample of rural cancer patients
3. Examine how cultural values influence help-seeking
4. Identify resources that address health literacy needs and barriers

Novitas Updates : Low-Volume Hospitals and Medicare Dependent Hospitals

Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) Hospital Extensions 

per the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 

https://www.novitas-solutions.com/parta/arcenter/reimb-ref/inpatient-ext.html

On January 2, 2013, President Obama signed into law the American Taxpayer Relief Act (ATRA) of 2012. The new law includes the extension of certain provisions of the Affordable Care Act. Specifically, the following Medicare fee-for-service policies (with October 1, 2012, effective dates) have been extended. See the following link for the complete Change Request #8214: http://www.cms.gov/Regulations-and-Guidance/Guidance/Transmittals/Downloads/R1195OTN.pdf

Section 605 - Extension of Medicare Inpatient Hospital Payment Adjustment for Low-Volume Hospitals: The Affordable Care Act allowed qualifying low-volume hospitals to receive add-on payments based on the number of Medicare discharges. To qualify, the hospital must have less than 1,600 Medicare discharges and be 15 miles or greater from the nearest like hospital. This provision extends the payment adjustment through September 30, 2013, retroactive to October 1, 2012. Mail your request (must be received by Novitas by March 22, 2013) for Low Volume Payment Adjustment and supporting documentation to:

Tina Raines
Novitas Solutions Inc.
532 Riverside Ave, ROC 10C
Jacksonville, FL 32202

Section 606 - Extension of the Medicare-Dependent Hospital (MDH) Program: The MDH program provides enhanced payment to support small rural hospitals for which Medicare patients make up a significant percentage of inpatient days or discharges. This provision extends the MDH program until October 1, 2013, and is retroactive to October 1, 2012. As directed in this Change Request, Novitas will send all affected MDH hospitals the letter referenced in Attachment 3 of the Change Request. If you have any questions on this process please contact:

Tina Raines
tina.raines@highmarkmedicareservices.com
(904) 363-5344

Help Us Help You!

Hello Rural Health Clinics,

Recently you received an email from Michelle Mills, Doug Miller and Sharon Adams regarding a rural health clinic data collection and reporting project that the Colorado Rural Health Center is working on with ClinicNET, our partner organization that advocates for all of Colorado's non-federally qualified safety net clinics. Increasingly Colorado's rural health clinics are acknowledged by state healthcare leaders, foundations, governmental entities and regulatory agencies as critical safety net providers. Your participation in the data collection project will help quantify the impact of your services on your community and Colorado's health care system at-large and grow the recognition of your work.

Please CLICK HERE to access the rural health clinic data collection survey.

Webinar on 340B GPO Exclusion Policy

Safety Net Hospitals for Pharmaceutical Access (SNHPA) invites you to a webinar on Wednesday, March 13 from 1:00-2:30 PM (Eastern) for an update on a new guidance released by the Office of Pharmacy Affairs (OPA) on February 7 regarding 340B hospitals’ use of group purchasing organizations (GPOs), typically referred to as the GPO exclusion. This event is limited to 340B hospitals and SNHPA corporate partners and registration is required. The charge for prospective member hospitals is $50.00. To register, please click HERE. A confirmation will be e-mailed to you once you register so please be sure to enter your e-mail address correctly. All registrations must be submitted by Monday, March 11. If you have questions about your registration or creating a log-in account, please contact Evangeline SoleynJohn at (202) 552-5865 or evangeline.soleynjohn@snhpa.org.

CAH Swing Bed Webinar Series

Join the Colorado Rural Health Center (CRHC) for a 2-part webinar series on Swing Bed usage in Critical Access Hospitals. Utilizing swing beds in Critical Access Hospitals provides a viable option at the local community level for patients in need of skilled care. Each webinar is Free for CRHC members; $99 for non-members. Click on the links below for additional information and to register.

CAH Swing Bed Webinar Part I – March 15, 11:30-1:00
CAH Swing Bed Webinar Part II – March 22, 11:30-1:00

For more information or questions, contact Caleb Siem at cs@coruralhealth.org.

Save the Date! – CRHC’s Regional CAH Quality Improvement Workshops and Patient Advocacy Workshops

CRHC’s Annual Regional CAH Quality Improvement Workshops will take place this year for the dates and locations below:

April 23 – Walsenburg 

April 25 – Aurora 

April 30 – Rifle

Each location will offer a hands-on CAH Quality Improvement Workshop from 9:00-3:00 where participants will have the opportunity to network, share best practices and take away new skills to assist them in their Quality Improvement efforts. This year’s workshops will offer some focused hands-on Excel training which will introduce techniques to help Quality Directors utilize the data they are gathering. Following the Quality Improvement Workshop, we will offer a Patient Advocacy Workshop from 4:00-7:30 featuring Patty Skolnik presenting “Switching Chairs: The Health Provider as the Patient and the Advocate”. 

Details and registration information will be made available soon. For more information or questions, contact Caleb Siem at cs@coruralhealth.org.

RHC Forum Scholarships

The CRHC is excited to offer scholarship opportunities for RHC facilities to help their staff attend the 2013 Forum!

The Forum serves as an essential educational, training, and networking event for all safety net clinics, members of the clinic team, and other interested parties. However, even after paying the registration fee attending the Forum can be a hurdle on its own, with the rising gas prices and hotel fees involved.

So let us help you attend!

Approved staff members can receive up to $500.00 per person to attend The Forum. Please click here for more information on how your clinic can receive funds to attend the Forum 2013. Don’t miss this excellent opportunity!

For more information (including agenda) on the Forum 2013, click here.

If you have any questions about registration, please contact Bridgette Olson at bo@coruralhealth.org.

Last Week to Register for Alamosa Bootcamp!

Make sure you get your registration in for the Alamosa Coding Certification Bootcamp March 19th-21st. Last day to register is March 14th!


Coding Certification Bootcamp in Alamosa, CO
March 19, 20 & 21, 2013
Ramada Inn & Conference Center/333 Sante Fe Ave, Alamosa, CO
Click here to register


In case you can't make our March bootcamp, why not go for our May bootcamp? Held in Rifle, this three day bootcamp will be held May 21-23, 2013.

Coding Certification Bootcamp in Rifle, CO.
May 21, 22 & 23, 2013
Grand River Hospital Conference Center/501 Airport Rd, Rifle, CO
Click here to register

Questions? Contact Danette Swanson ds@coruralhealth.org

Registration Assistance: Samantha Hiner at 720.248.2757

June 2012: Rural Medicare Advantage Enrollment and Premium Update

June 2012: Rural Medicare Advantage Enrollment and Premium Update 

Medicare Advantage (MA) enrollment continued to grow and premiums continued to decline in 2012 despite reductions in payment to the plans as mandated by the Affordable Care Act. Rural MA enrollees face higher premiums than their urban counterparts, and the average premium for rural MA beneficiaries fell to $48 per month in 2012 as compared to $52 per month in 2011.

Analysis of the zero premiums by plan in relationship to the plans charging a premium gives additional insights into the MA marketplace as faced by rural enrollees. Zero premium plans are less available in rural areas and are selected less often when they are available, which is a potential source of inequity between rural and urban areas.

Contact information:
Keith J. Mueller, PhD
RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
Phone: 319.384.3831
keith-mueller@uiowa.edu

Don’t Miss Your Chance to Enhance Your Spanish Skills!

Spanish Language Training for Health Care Professionals, a four-day intensive hosted by CHAMPS and the Denver Medical Society (DMS), will be held in Denver, CO, Friday, April 19 through Monday, April 22, 2013. The course is recommended for physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, nurses, medical assistants, and other clinical personnel. Four full days of instruction, course book, and over 40 hours of continuing medical education (CME) credit are included in the cost. With three Spanish language skill levels offered and a central Denver location, this is the perfect medical Spanish course to brush up, expand your skills, or start learning.

Register early as space is limited! 

For more information and to register, visit www.CHAMPSonline.org/Events.html#SLT or email chelsea@CHAMPSonline.org.

SEED Grant Application Deadline

The first round of SEED grant applications are due April 30th!

The Colorado Rural Health Center (CRHC) sets aside a portion of its discretionary revenues for the Colorado Rural Health Seed Grant program. Seed Grant money is available for rural projects whose intent matches the mission of CRHC. Rural organizational members can apply for these grants in amounts up to $1,500.

Please click here for more information, as well as applications.

WIHI on Mar. 7: On the Frontlines of Hand Hygiene

March 7, 2013: No Excuses, No Slack! 

The Latest from the Front Lines on Hand Hygiene

(2:00 – 3:00 PM Eastern Time) 

Featuring:

Gene H. Burke, MD, Vice President and Executive Medical Director for Clinical Effectiveness, Sentara Healthcare
Michael Howell, MD, Director of Healthcare Delivery Science, Director of Critical Care Quality, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Lisa L. Maragakis, MD, MPH, FSHEA, Director of Hospital Epidemiology and Infection Control, Johns Hopkins Hospital
Scott A. Miller, MD, FACP, Vice President, Medical Affairs, Sentara Leigh Hospital
Tom Talbot, MD, MPH, Chief Hospital Epidemiologist, Vanderbilt University Medical Center

One of the cornerstones of infection prevention in any health care setting, including when someone is being cared for at home, is good hand hygiene. Much of the attention in recent years has focused on hospitals and their rates of hand hygiene compliance among staff. And rightly so. Among the biggest contributors to hospital-acquired infections are, inadvertently, health professionals themselves... and others who come in contact with patients.

The good news, as you’ll be reminded on the March 7 WIHI, entitled No Excuses, No Slack! The Latest from the Front Lines on Hand Hygiene, is that awareness of the necessity of strict hand hygiene compliance has never been greater… not just in the US, but in acute care settings globally. And this awareness has been coupled with practices that are being adhered to more reliably than ever before. But not everywhere, all the time; organizations that can tout rates as high as 95% are still the exception, not the rule, and good performers continue to face challenges closing the gap.

For the March 7 WIHI, host Madge Kaplan has rounded up infection prevention leaders and clinicians from four organizations whose recent innovations with hand hygiene at their facilities represent what could be the best bet yet that 100% compliance is achievable. Sentara, Johns Hopkins, Vanderbilt, and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center all have fresh approaches that rely on new kinds of auditing tools to discern what really works; better surveillance, monitoring, and measuring; reengineering; constant education; and a laser-like focus on behavior and culture change.

What’s working in your organization? How are you getting your hand hygiene compliance rates to move upward? Compare and contrast your methods with those of our guests.

Please join us on the March 7 WIHI! Click here to enroll.

Patient Safety Awareness Week in Full Swing!

March 3rd-9th is Patient Safety Awareness Week, an annual education and awareness campaign for health care safety led by the National Patient Safety Foundation (www.npsf.org).

We here at the Colorado Rural Health Center would like to help you participate. The Essential Guide for Patient Safety Officers offers a roadmap for health care organizations to create the necessary strategy, structure, environment, and metrics to improve patient safety. Also you might consider enrolling in the Patient Safety Executive Development Program offered by IHI.

At a Glance -- February 2013

The February edition of "At a Glance" has been published.

This Department of Health Care Policy and Financing publication provides information on major initiatives including policy changes and program updates. Please feel free to share it with your colleagues.

Please click the following link to read the publication : At a Glance