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A monthly newsletter highlighting events and resources for Nursing Homes & Community Coalitions
In This Issue:
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- CMS/CDC/AHCA Fireside Chat Recording
Recordings from past COVID-19 vaccine fireside chats can now be accessed on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) website. Catch up on past chats on your own time. Listen Now
- Targeted COVID-19 Training for Frontline Nursing Home Staff and Management
CMS is also offering targeted trainings to help nursing homes during the winter months of the pandemic. A series of scenario-based trainings are available to help meet the urgent and ongoing needs of nursing home managers and frontline staff. These free learning intensives are hosted on the CMS Quality, Safety & Education Portal (QESP). Learn More
- CMS-CDC Fundamentals of COVID-19 Prevention for Nursing Home Management
With COVID cases rising, preparing to keep residents and staff safe is critical. CMS is offering flexible, on-demand infection control training. Live Q&A sessions are also held twice a month on Thursdays at 4 p.m. ET. Learn More and Register | Download Infographic
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Our team is collecting and curating the latest updates and resources about the COVID-19 vaccine on our website, so you can visit one page to find the information you need. We've also included a handful of these resources below -- visit and bookmark these pages today.
- Alliant Quality COVID-19 Vaccine Resources
Curated resources and best practices to support long-term care facilities, clinics, providers, and staff as they navigate vaccine distribution. Alliant Quality COVID-19 Vaccine Resources
- Immunization Action Coalition "Ask the Experts"
The Immunization Action Coalition has established an "Ask the Experts" COVID-19 Vaccine information page with great FAQs for providers. Access Now
- Immunization Action Coalition Express
The Immunization Action Coalition Newsletter is released weekly and will contain the latest news from trusted resources about the vaccine. Don't miss their Video of the Week! Read Latest Edition
- Vaccine Co-Administration
Providers looking for information about the vaccine timing, spacing, and co-administration should reference information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Read More
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Leadership Lessons
Words of advice from leaders on the front lines.
- This month’s leadership lesson is from Pauline Kinney, RN, MA, LNHA, Senior Director of Healthcare Quality Improvement.
As a leader in health care charged with keeping residents and staff safe, COVID-19 has brought many challenges. Although the rapid development of the COVID-19 vaccine is a positive development, it’s important to consider how to best operationalize vaccine distribution and maximize staff and resident vaccine acceptance.
Read More About Advancing Vaccine Acceptance
Best Practice Corner
Each month Alliant Quality collects exemplar practices from organizations across the seven-state region. Thank you for your leadership, creativity, and perseverance.
- Communities across the country are looking for new ways to expand community access with incoming shipments of the COVID-19 vaccine. Learn how Orlando Health is helping to push and make the vaccine available to Florida’s black and Hispanic populations -- communities that have been historically underserved. Read Article
- Kudos to Methodist Homes of Alabama and Northwest Florida CEO Christopher Tomlin for stressing the importance of the COVID-19 vaccine for staff and residents through text messages and videos. Watch Video
Do you have a promising practice to share? Please reply to this email and we will feature you in an upcoming issue. |
AHSCAST - Making Health Care Better
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Everyone deserves quality health care. Join Alliant Health Solutions every other Thursday as they interview guests committed to making health care better. If you are a health care consumer, provider, insurer, system, or consultant, this is the podcast for you. Listen Now |
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Events
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Learning & Action Network (LAN) Events
- Nursing Home: Immunizations Fears, Myths & Truths
Tuesday, February 16 at 2 p.m. ET/1 p.m. CT
Register Now
- Community Coalition: Increasing Community Vaccine Acceptance Rates
Thursday, February 25 at 12:30 p.m. ET/11:30 a.m. CT
Register Now
Watch previous LAN Events and Bite-Size Learnings on Alliant Quality's YouTube channel.
Partner Events
- Morehouse School of Medicine National COVID-19 Resiliency Network (NCRN)
The goal of the Morehouse School of Medicine National COVID-19 Resiliency Network (NCRN) is to mitigate the negative impact of COVID-19 on racial and ethnic minorities and American Indian and Alaska Native communities, rural communities, and others that are disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. Learn More and Subscribe for Updates
- AHRQ ECHO National Nursing Home COVID-19 Action Network
Supported by the federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), and in collaboration with the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI), Project ECHO is launching a National Nursing Home COVID-19 Action Network. Nursing homes and training centers around the country are being actively recruited to join this interactive community of practice to collaboratively advance improvements in COVID-19 preparedness, safety, and infection control. Sign Up Now
- COVID-19 Clinical Rounds: Feb 2, 9, 16, and 23 at 10 a.m. ET
COVID-19 Clinical Rounds were launched to create peer-to-peer learning networks where clinicians who have more experience treating patients with COVID-19 share their challenges and successes with clinicians across the U.S. and around the world. Each session includes brief presentations from experienced expert clinicians and the majority of each session is spent in discussion related to Q&A generated by the participants. Register Now
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Resources
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- CDC Health Advisory
Fatal drug overdoses caused by synthetic opioids continue to rise in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Learn more by reviewing the official health advisory from the CDC. Read Advisory
- 5-Point Strategy to Combat the Opioid Crisis
Combatting the opioid crisis is one of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) top priorities. The 5-Point Strategy was designed to empower local communities on the frontlines. Learn More
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Access FREE expert guidance on this topic: Contact Stacy Hull |
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Alliant Quality has many resources to help you navigate NHSN!
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New to your facility? Click here to gain access. Have your 5 digit NHSN OrgID and previous NHSN user’s email to complete the form.
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Leaving and need to reassign access to your facility? Click here for instructions.
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Data submission for Point of Care Testing began November 20th. Click here for training slides.
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Click here for instructions on Adding Users to your NHSN account.
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Attend an upcoming Infection Prevention Shop Talk webinar session!
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Contact Marilee Johnson for support
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Access FREE expert guidance on this topic: Contact Melody Brown |
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- Digital Health Tools Survey
Are You a Primary Care Clinician located in Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, or Tennessee? We want to hear from you! *Other specialties are invited as well*
Despite tremendous potential for digital health tools (DHTs) to aid in the advancement of health equity, our prior research has identified gaps in technology adoption that impact high disparity populations. The goal of the NCPC Digital Health Tools Survey is to assess how adoption and use of DHTs affect underserved communities and health disparities in this region. Take our Digital Health Tools Survey -- participants will receive a $50 gift card! Complete Survey
- Tip Sheets for Mapping Stakeholders and Recruiting Stakeholders As COVID-19 and increasing vaccination acceptance rates continue to be our collective top priority, Care Transitions work helps ensure that patients are successful in their transitions to the next level of post-of-acute-care.
- Collaboration with community partners is essential to that effort. Alliant Quality encourages community coalitions to reach out to community partners such as faith-based organizations, behavioral health services, senior housing, local AARP chapters, and agencies working to combat food insecurity. Our Tip Sheets for Mapping Stakeholders and Recruiting Stakeholders can help your organization develop and successfully execute a relationship strategy based on your community’s unique needs and priorities. Tips for Mapping Stakeholders | Tips for Recruiting Stakeholders
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- Quality Measure Rating Changes
Quarterly updates of most of the quality measures (QMs) posted on Care Compare and used in the Five-Star Quality Rating System resumed with the January 2021 refresh. For the January 2021 update, CMS used data for July 2019- June 2020 for all of the measures that were updated. The two QMs that are part of the Skilled Nursing Facility Quality Reporting Program will not be updated in January 2021. Additional information can be found in the Care Compare User’s Guide. Access Guide
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- Telehealth 101 - A Tip Sheet for Patients
This one-page flyer from Alliant Quality outlines the key tips for patients to help prepare for telehealth visits. Download Tip Sheet
- Virtual Meeting Tips & Tricks
Virtual meetings are an effective and efficient way to keep moving ahead on community coalition initiatives when face-to-face meetings are not possible. This document from Alliant Quality summarizes tips about how to establish a virtual meeting forum, plan for the meeting, and a checklist you can use to successfully engage participants virtually. Download Tool
- Community Coalition Assessment Tool
It's recommended that community coalitions complete an assessment at least annually to evaluate effectiveness of interventions and goals and guide the identification of opportunities for further growth and sustainability. Download Tool
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Members of the Beneficiary & Family Advisory Council are our partners in making healthcare better. To join us in this important work, contact Mel Brown or submit this referral form.
Browse resources our council has worked on below:
- My Care Transitions Plan
COVID-19 related visitor restrictions have exacerbated the challenges associated with ensuring patients, families, and care partners fully understand current plans of care, as well as the information needed to ensure a safe transition to home or the next level of care. The My Care Transitions Plan is designed to help patients and families document and keep track of questions to ask caregivers before discharge. The tool also helps providers proactively implement care plan interventions in areas that have the potential to raise the risk of readmission. Originally designed as a brochure for printing, the tool is now also available in a full-page format for electronic distribution, and both files are editable PDF forms. View Brochure | View Full-Page Layout
- Telehealth Tip Sheet
The BFAC worked with Alliant Quality subject matter experts to develop this one-page flyer outlining the key tips for patients to help prepare for telehealth visits. Download Tip Sheet
- Person-Centered Care During a Pandemic: Meet My Loved One
Alliant Quality's Carolyn Kazdan invited Drs. Rodney Tucker and Sylvia Huang from University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Center for Palliative and Supportive Care to record a bite-size learning on the Meet My Loved One program. The doctors generously shared the Meet My Loved One tool, strategies for implementation, and the positive feedback they have received from providers to help the bedside care team deliver person-centered compassionate care during COVD-19. The BFAC provided guidance for the framing for the customized tool developed by Alliant Quality.
Watch Video | Download Instructions for Tool | Download Tool
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For more information about Alliant Quality:
www.alliantquality.org
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