Click here to register for the HHQI Acute Care Hospitalization National Campaign
Measure Definition
As part of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) Home Health Quality Initiative (HHQI), FMQAI, the Medicare Quality Improvement Organization for Florida, is working with home health agencies to decrease the percentage of patients admitted to the hospital (called acute care hospitalization (ACH)) while under agency care. The hospitalization rate for home health patients has risen steadily for the past three, years, with approximately 950,000 or 28% of home care episodes ending in hospitalization.1 The majority of home health patients are admitted to the hospital within the first three weeks of home health service.
Acute care hospitalization is not only undesirable for patients and home health agencies, it can be costly for payers. The Medicare program estimates that the average cost of an acute care hospitalization is $3,506 per day with an average length of stay of 5.9 days.2 These figures would indicate a cost of $20,685 per patient per hospitalization.
FMQAI and home health agencies are working together to implement several best practice strategies to decrease ACH rates, including:
- Utilization of risk assessment tool to identify patients at high risk for re-hospitalization
- Initiation of frequent contact with high-risk patients within the first two weeks of care
- Education of patients and caregivers on early response plans
- Teaching patients to self-manage their condition(s)
What Improvement in this Measure Means to the Patient
Improvement in the ACH measure can enhance quality of life because patients can receive care in their home where they’re most comfortable.
What Improvement in this Measure Means to the Provider
Improvement in the ACH measure usually means improvement in other quality measures, since patients are assessed for their risk of re-hospitalization, monitored more frequently and taught self-management. Many times, agencies see improvement in the oral medications, dyspnea and pain measures.
One of the most important effects associated with improvement in this measure is an increase in both patient and caregiver satisfaction.
The Benefits of Working with FMQAI
- Expertise in the clinical, health information technology and quality improvement sectors
- Access to telehealth best practices (i.e. phone monitoring, telemonitoring, teletriage) and support materials
- Consultation and support to enhance communication between the agency and the referring physician
- Quality improvement planning, implementation and evaluation, including Outcome-Based Quality Improvement (OBQI) training
- Monthly data trend reports to monitor progress
- Access to staff and patient education materials through www.medqic.org
Assistance Provided by FMQAI
- One-on-one consultation via onsite visits and/or telephone support
- Remote learning (e.g. teleconferences, online trainings)
- Tools, workbooks and evidence-based practices as featured on www.medqic.org
- Data analysis and application
To Register
Register to participate in the HHQI National Campaign by following these steps.
1. Visit www.homehealthquality.org
2. Click on "Home Health Agency Registration"
3. Fill out the form on the Web site - you will need your six digit Medicare provider number when you register
4. Click "Submit"
Home health agencies are encouraged to participate in the HHQI National Campaign to optimize clincial performance with FREE support, resources, networking opportunities and benchmarking data. The campaign is designed to help agencies improve their ACH rate or sustain an exemplary ACH rate through monthly best practice intervention packages.
All participating agencies will receive an electronic welcome package within two to three weeks from registration. The welcome package will include an informational letter, a certificate of participation and the exclusive HHQI logo to use in marketing efforts to showcase your quality improvement commitment. Additionally, registered agencies will receive monthly reports including actual and risk-adjusted monthly ACH rates, along with national and statewide ACH benchmarking based on based on CMS data.
Contact Information
For more information about this project, please contact Susan Stone, MSN, RN, Home Health Project Director, by calling 813-865-3526, or via e-mail at sstone@flqio.sdps.org.
1 OBQI Roll-Up Report Summary Data, March 2004 – February 2005.
2 Deitz, D., McGann, P., & Pamon, C. (2005 Septermber). Task 1b: 2008 – The Future is Now. Presentation given at the QualityNet Conference, Hunt Valey, MD.
