Quality Measures Impacting Emergency Medicine: T-System Updates To Accommodate 2008 PQRI Measures

Main Category: IT / Internet / E-mail
Also Included In: Aid / Disasters
Article Date: 10 Jun 2008 - 3:00 PDT

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T-System, Inc., the leading provider of clinical documentation and information solutions in emergency departments and urgent care centers, today announced it is updating its electronic and paper charting solutions to address changes brought about by the Physician Quality Reporting Initiative (PQRI), instituted by the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS). A new white paper is immediately available that describes how T-System's electronic and paper documentation solutions are being adapted to incorporate the changes for providers. The white paper is available for download at no cost here.

The paper, entitled "How The New PQRI Will Affect Emergency Department Provider Documentation," provides practical and actionable information on the changes in documentation and reporting involving physicians, physician assistants and nurse practitioners working in emergency care. The PQRI documentation standards, voluntary at present, are incentivized by financial bonuses from CMS. Providers and/or groups that are able to report data on at least 80% of qualified patients for each of at least three emergency medicine-related quality measures during calendar 2008, will receive the bonus.

"T-System has gotten out in front of this important issue not only by making changes to its paper and electronic solutions, but also by creating this white paper," said Suzy Wier, T-System Senior VP and Chief Nursing Officer as well as Chair of EDPMA's Pay for Performance Task Force. "The paper explains the details of the changes, the thinking behind them, and the steps EDs can take to both qualify for the bonus and improve their quality of care."

New Measures

PQRI currently encompasses 119 quality measures applicable to medical facilities, of which eight apply directly to emergency medicine. Those eight are:

- Aspirin on arrival for AMI (acute myocardial infarction)
- ECG performed for non-traumatic chest pain
- ECG performed for syncope
- Vital signs for CAP (community acquired pneumonia)
- Assessment of oxygen saturation for CAP
- Assessment of mental status for CAP
- Appropriate empiric antibiotic for CAP
- T-PA considered for ischemic stroke

Any three of these eight measures qualify for the bonus-based 2008 reporting initiative. To ensure qualification in the initiative, EDs are encouraged to track more than three measures in case the 80% threshold is not met in one or more categories.

T-System remains optimistic about the reporting of these new PQRI measures in emergency medicine given a recent letter to the Senate Finance Committee by Kerry Weems, acting administrator for CMS. Weems indicated that emergency care physicians have a higher-than-average rate of participation, where the highest levels reached almost 20% of physicians reporting PQRI data.

T-System Response

Changes are being made in both The T SystemEV® Emergency Department Information System (EDIS) and The T System® for Emergency Physicians T-Sheets® to simplify reporting on the new PQRI measures. Anticipated changes will include bullet highlighting of diagnoses for which PQRI quality measures should be addressed; a summary in the Progress section of addressable quality measures; and a new Quality Reporting Addendum with a comprehensive list of emergency medicine-related PQRI measures.

T-System's template changes will be part of the 2008/2009 version and are expected to be rolled out to new and existing clients beginning late spring/early summer 2008. For more information about PQRI and its impact on emergency medicine reporting, email pqri@tsystem.com. To download a copy of "How The New PQRI Will Affect Emergency Department Provider Documentation", go here.

T-System

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