Development of quality indicators to assess emergency general surgery
Editor's Note Development of and adherence to quality indicators by providers may improve the quality of emergency general surgery, for which current outcomes are modifiable, finds this study. Of 25 quality indicators developed and rated as valid, there were 13 for patient-level and 12 for hospital-level quality. Adherence with 18…
CMS star ratings not linked to surgical outcomes
Editor's Note High Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Overall Hospital Quality Star Ratings were not associated with improved patient outcomes in advanced laparoscopic abdominal surgery, this study finds. Morbidity at low-star hospitals was higher for colorectal surgery but not for bariatric or hiatal hernia surgery, and no significant…
Survey: Physicians unprepared for MACRA
Editor's Note A survey of 1,000 physicians by the American Medical Association and KPMG finds that fewer than one in four believe they are well prepared to meet the 2017 requirements of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA), KPMG.com reported on June 28. MACRA reshapes how…
Analysis finds unplanned returns to the OR overestimated
Editor's Note In this single institution study, the most common reasons for unplanned return to the OR (uROR) were infection and hemorrhage. However, the researchers found that a large number of cases were incorrectly classified as uROR, when they were instead planned reoperations without adequate documentation. Using uROR as reported…
Surgical ‘ICU boarders’ get less attention from physicians, caregivers
Editor's Note Surgical ICU patients boarding in alternative ICUs because of overcrowding are often seen at the end of rounds, receive fewer face-to-face assessments from physicians, and are given less bedside attention by ICU provider teams, this study finds. The researchers found that: caregivers spent about 16% less time on…
Value-based purchasing not linked to improvements in quality
Editor's Note In this study, Medicare’s Hospital Value-Based Purchasing (HVBP) program was not associated with improvements in quality measures of clinical process or patient experience. HVBP also was not associated with a significant reduction in two of three mortality measures (ie, acute myocardial infarction or heart failure). It was associated…
Half million providers to get 2% cut in Medicare payments
Editor's Note More than 500,000 physicians and other providers will get a 2% cut in their Medicare payments because of poor performance in the Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS), the June 13 Modern Healthcare reports. The penalties are based on 2015 claims data. Though Medicare is phasing out PQRS and…
Racial disparities in surgical mortality narrowing
Editor's Note Despite concerns that quality improvement efforts may widen disparities, national racial disparities in surgical mortality are narrowing, this study finds. Using Medicare claims data from 2005 to 2014, Harvard researchers found that, overall, national mortality trends improved for both black and white patients by 0.10% and 0.07% per…
National Time Out Day is June 14
Editor's Note National Time Out Day, June 14, highlights the importance of taking a time out and increases awareness of safe practices that lead to optimal surgical patient outcomes. The Joint Commission is partnering with AORN on National Time Out Day to ask every perioperative team member to be a…
Value-based reforms linked to readmission reduction
Editor's Note Hospital participation in value-based reforms was associated with greater reductions in 30-day readmissions, this study finds. In this analysis of 2,837 hospitals between 2008 and 2015, researchers found that participation in one or more voluntary Medicare value-based reforms, which included the Meaningful Use of Electronic Health Records program,…
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