Newswise — CHICAGO, Feb. 2, 2015 – The National Healthcare Quality Association (NAHQ, www.nahq.org) will host its first-ever National Quality Summit, April 23-4, in Philadelphia. Leading experts in healthcare quality management will cover an increasingly significant concern – how to assure favorable outcomes when transitioning patients from one clinical environment to another or to the home.
“In the fast-paced evolution of healthcare delivery, managing the quality of transitions is recognized as a critical need along the continuum for every episode of care,” said NAHQ President Mary Huddleston, RN, CPHQ. “The NAHQ Summit is a unique opportunity to learn from national experts about key clinical, financial and policy drivers influencing quality during transitions in care, and translate practical recommendations into actions plans for their organizations.”
Transitions in care can be broadly defined as practices implemented across the continuum of care, such as within a healthcare delivery organization, across settings (e.g. acute to post-acute) and within a community or population.
Deficiencies in quality and safety in care transitions have been documented in several studies. In 2009, the Journal of Hospital Medicine reported that 1 in 5 patients discharged from the hospital to home experienced an adverse event within three weeks, and the National Quality Forum found that preventable hospital readmissions that occur within 30 days of discharge cost Medicare $15 billion a year. Further, according to the Annals of Internal Medicine, the cost of poor discharge planning is estimated between $14 and $44 billion a year.
“Implementing strategies to lower hospital readmission rates is critical for improving quality and patient safety and reducing healthcare costs. Numerous studies have shown that quality transitions in care are one method to reduce readmission rates,” said NAHQ Summit Chairman Eric A. Coleman, MD, MPH, professor of medicine and director of the Care Transitions Program at University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.
Speakers at the Summit will cover clinical, social, economic and public policy influences on healthcare transition quality. Topics include:
• How the National Healthcare Policy Landscape Is Shaping our Strategies to Improve Quality and Safety of Transitional Care
• Fostering Interdisciplinary Collaboration To Improve Quality and Safety During Care Transitions
• Promoting True Patient and Family and Engagement as a Primary Strategy
• The Role of the Primary Care Physician and Specialist in Transitional Care
Registration for the Summit is available at www.nahq.com/education/Quality-Summit. The event will be held at the Hyatt Regency Philadelphia at Penn’s Landing. In addition, all nine sessions of the Summit will be streamed live with additional opportunities for participants to join the conversation via social media and other outlets. The sessions also will be available on demand for one week after the Summit.
About NAHQFounded in 1976 and covering a full spectrum of healthcare specialties, the National Association for Healthcare Quality (NAHQ) is an essential and interactive resource for quality and patient safety professionals worldwide. NAHQ’s vision is to realize the promise of healthcare improvement through innovative practices in quality and patient safety.
NAHQ’s 12,000-plus members and certificants benefit from cutting edge education and NAHQ’s unique collective body of knowledge, as well as opportunities to learn from a diverse group of professionals. These resources help assure success for implementing improvements in quality outcomes and patient safety, navigating the changing healthcare landscape, and serving as the voice of quality. Visit www.nahq.org to learn more.###
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