A substantial grant from the Anthem Foundation has equipped physicians treating patients in emergency departments (EDs) across the state with new, state-of-the-art software to help make faster, more informed treatment decisions. The software, called EDie, was developed by Salt Lake City-based Collective Medical Technologies and is being provided at no cost to hospitals across the commonwealth by the Kentucky Hospital Association (KHA) thanks to the $250,000 grant.

The partnership enables KHA member hospitals’ access to the Collective Medical network and EDie solution, a real-time, risk-adjusted event notification and care collaboration platform. This helps KHA members identify and support high-risk patients in need and facilitates collaboration of providers across care settings. As a result, the partnership...

The Advisory Committee for the Kentucky Statewide Opioid Stewardship was recently named and held its first meeting. The Committee will develop standards for the program and is comprised of clinical experts in emergency medicine, addictions treatment, pharmacy and nursing, along with hospital administration and a former patient. These experts, along with KHA staff, will assist participating hospitals with implementation and will gather data to track their progress.

If a CMS surveyor showed up at your hospital tomorrow, would you know what to do? Two upcoming KHA seminars will cover the 2019 changes in the CMS Hospital Conditions of Participation (CoPs). Hospitals have seen a significant increase in survey activity by CMS, so this is a great way to educate everyone in your hospital on all the sections in the CMS hospital manual especially ones that apply to their department.

CMS Hospital Conditions of Participation Made Easy 2019 July 17-18 Brochure Online Registration   Revised CMS CAH Conditions of Participation 2019: Ensuring Compliance July 18-19 Brochure...

The Ireland Army Health Clinic will change command of the Medical Activity at Fort Knox from Colonel Kevin R. Bass to Colonel Hugh McLean on Monday, July 8 at Haszard Auditorium in Fort Knox.

The Kentucky Society for Healthcare Public Relations and Marketing (KSHPRM) hosted its Spring Conference on Friday, June 7 at Shaker Village in Harrodsburg.

The conference welcomed public relations and marketers from hospitals and health systems across the state to learn about the rapid advancements in health care marketing.

The speakers for the event included Dr. Kathy Previs (Eastern Kentucky University), Rudy Fernandez (Creative Outhouse), Una Newman (Frederick Swanston) and Michael Cunningham.

“This year’s Spring Conference was one of our best ever! We had four terrific, nationally known speakers, and everyone seemed to enjoy the networking opportunities. We always hold our KSHPRM events in interesting and uniquely Kentucky venues, and Shaker Village may be my favorite yet,” stated...

Earlier today, KHA submitted comments to CMS regarding the proposed fiscal year 2020 inpatient rehabilitation facility (IRF) prospective payment system rule. The comments are available to members on the Policy page of the KHA website.

KHA specifically commented on the definition of a rehabilitation physician and the proposed weighted motor score.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Nancy Galvagni at KHA (ngalvagni@kyha.com).

A great way to keep up with KHA is via social media. The Association has a Facebook page, a Twitter Feed, a LinkedIn page and event an Instagram account. You can use the links and handles below to find KHA online:

Facebook @KYHospitals

Twitter @KYHospitals

LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/company/kentucky-hospital-association

Instagram @kyhospitals

Nurse leaders and HR professionals are invited to a series of brief webinars on the Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC) presented by NCSBN. Webinar topics include:

• Overview of the Nurse Licensure Compact
• Update regarding the status of pending legislation in various states
• Explanation of Nursys, the national nurse licensure database and E-Notify
• Requirements when changing primary state of residence
• Answers to Your Questions

For more information and registration, visit https://www.ncsbn.org/nlc-meetings.htm.

The Kentucky Institute for Patient Safety and Quality (KIPSQ) will host its summer deep dive and safe table meeting on July 16 at Baptist Health Lexington. The event will also include a legal update for KIPSQ members.

ECRI Institute PSO’s Deep DiveTM: Meeting Patients’ Behavioral Health Needs in Acute Care explores how hospitals can meet patients’ behavioral health needs in non-psychiatric areas of the hospital. Failing to meet patients’ behavioral health needs has implications for patient safety, quality of care, occupational health, patient and staff satisfaction, security and risk management, legal and regulatory compliance, public relations and the organization’s operations and finances. In acute care settings, leaders should analyze how well the hospital performs in meeting patients’ behavioral health...

KHA salutes Wayne County Hospital and its CEO, Joe Murrell, MHA, FACHE, for being the first hospital in the Cumberland District to join the Kentucky Statewide Opioid Stewardship (KY SOS). Murrell joined the program at the Cumberland District Meeting in March.

Opioid stewardship involves a coordinated effort to reduce opioid-related harm by developing alternative means to manage pain and, when opioids are used, assuring that opioid prescribing and patient monitoring aligns with evidence-based guidelines. KY SOS will focus on reducing opioid overprescribing and improving safe opioid use by providing hospitals and health systems with education and resources on how to attain the highest level of performance on opioid stewardship.

KHA is proud to lead the KY SOS program as hospitals commit to working...

KHA salutes Russell County Hospital and its CEO Scott Thompson along with Taylor Regional Hospital and its CEO Jane Wheatley for being the first hospitals in the Ohio Valley District to join the Kentucky Statewide Opioid Stewardship (KY SOS). Both hospitals joined the program at the Ohio Valley District Meeting in March.

Opioid stewardship involves a coordinated effort to reduce opioid-related harm by developing alternative means to manage pain and, when opioids are used, assuring that opioid prescribing and patient monitoring aligns with evidence-based guidelines. KY SOS will focus on reducing opioid overprescribing and improving safe opioid use by providing hospitals and health systems with education and resources on how to attain the highest level of performance on opioid stewardship.

KHA is proud to lead the KY SOS program as hospitals commit to working together to improve opioid stewardship collectively to combat the opioid epidemic in the commonwealth.

For information about how your hospital can join KY SOS, please contact Donna Meador at KHA (dmeador@kyha.com).

Pictured (top picture) are Russell County Hospital CEO Scott Thompson (center) with KHA's Melanie Moch and Donna Meador.

Pictured (second picture) is Taylor Regional Hospital's KY SOS team with CEO Jane Wheatley (seated, center).

On May 30, KHA submitted comments to CMS on the FY 2020 proposed Medicare inpatient prospective payment rule. The proposed rule includes changes that will increase the wage index for hospitals in the lowest 25th percent, which is all of Kentucky’s rural PPS hospitals. Specifically, this increase would be half of the difference between the hospital’s pre-adjustment wage index and the 25th percentile (0.8482). The increase is budget neutral, meaning that it will be funded by reducing the area wage index of hospitals above the 75th percentile (more than 1.0351). The change provides the greatest benefit to hospitals located in the East South Central census region (which includes Kentucky) while reducing the wage index in the Pacific and New England states.

KHA has long advocated for action to address the widening gap between low and high wage index areas. Kentucky has the 36th lowest rural wage index and no urban area has a wage index greater than 1.0.

The change is estimated to raise Kentucky...

 

The Kentucky Society of Addiction Medicine will host a conference on June 29 in Lexington on Improving MAT in Kentucky. During this program, participants will learn about new research findings in the fields of addiction medicine. Attendees will learn about recent advances and current evidence-based approaches to understanding and treating substance use disorder and addiction. Attendees will acquire new knowledge and skills to improve the care of those with addiction.

The agenda's topics include:

Is it Psychiatric or Substance Induced MAT in a Primary Care Setting Caring for the Displaced Chronic Pain Patient Kentucky's Political Climate and Addiction Treatment Next Phase of Contingency Management - Technology Potential Endocrinopathies with Chronic Opiate Usage The program has been approved for 4.5 hours of HB1-approved CME credits.

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Recently, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) proposed changes to the licensure regulations that govern Medical Detoxification Services. These changes would have restricted the ability of hospitals to offer this needed service, particularly at a time when we are combating the opioid epidemic. KHA discussed these concerns with the OIG and submitted comments, after consulting with the KHA Psychiatric and Chemical Dependency Forum and individual members. KHA is pleased that the OIG agreed with all of KHA’s recommendations and, as a result, they will not finalize the problematic changes.

Specifically, as a result of KHA’s comments, the OIG is eliminating the proposed requirement for medical detoxification services to be provided only by a hospital with chemical dependency (CD) treatment beds. Instead, the rule will maintain the status quo by allowing medical detox services to continue to be provided in any of the following facilities: a chemical dependency treatment program, a general acute care hospital or a licensed psychiatric hospital. The regulation does update the requirements for providing detox services. However, requiring patients to receive medical detoxification services in a licensed chemical dependency bed or only in a hospital with chemical dependency beds was too restrictive, given that there are only seven hospitals with licensed CD beds and it is standard practice for medical detoxification protocols to be initiated on medical/surgical patients hospitalized for other reasons. The OIG’s proposed restriction also created issues related to reimbursement if all detoxification had to be rendered in a CD bed as opposed to an acute bed or, for psychiatric hospitals, in a psychiatric bed....

Did you know that the number one area of deficiencies in the CMS Conditions of Participation (CoP) is regarding restraints? CMS issued a memo summarizing all of the deficiencies against hospitals which is updated quarterly. KHA will host a webinar on June 19 discuss the most problematic standards in the restraint section.

If a CMS surveyor showed up at your hospital tomorrow would you be prepared? Does your staff understand all 50 pages of the CMS interpretive guidelines? This program will also discuss the proposed changes to restraints published in the Hospital Improvement Rule which address changing the term to licensed practitioners so PAs can order restraints.

See the program's flyer for additional details about the webinar. Online registration...

KHA salutes TriStar Greenview Regional Hospital and its CEO Mike Sherrod for being the first hospital in the Twin Lakes District to join the Kentucky Statewide Opioid Stewardship (KY SOS). Sherrod joined the program at the Twin Lakes District Meeting in March.

Opioid stewardship involves a coordinated effort to reduce opioid-related harm by developing alternative means to manage pain and, when opioids are used, assuring that opioid prescribing and patient monitoring aligns with evidence-based guidelines. KY SOS will focus on reducing opioid overprescribing and improving safe opioid use by providing hospitals and health systems with education and resources on how to attain the highest level of performance on opioid stewardship.

KHA is proud to lead the KY SOS program as hospitals...

KHA and the Kentucky Hospital Research and Education Foundation (KHREF) is pleased to continually provide the opportunity for critical access hospital (CAH) CEOs, CFOs and other financial leaders to network and discuss important financial topics. KHA shares the goal with the Kentucky Office of Rural Health (KORH) to provide education, resources and the opportunity for CAHs to collaborate in the collective effort to strengthen the state's rural health network and sustain access to quality health care services. This effort is supported through the Rural Hospital Flexibility Program – a federal grant to support CAHs.

On June 6, KHA will host a meeting of the Kentucky Rural Hospital Financial Network — a meeting for CFOs of small, rural and CAH hospitals — at Baptist Health Richmond.

Please see the flyer for more details. Online registration...

Safety net hospitals struggle to stretch scarce resources to provide crucial services to their patients while meeting their bottom line. It does not have to be this way. When managed compliantly, the 340B program does what it was intended to do: secure the financial future of safety net organizations who serve the nation’s vulnerable population.

The 340B program can have a significantly positive impact for hospitals, their patients and their communities if hospitals know how to administer and manage the program effectively.

KHA will host a 340B Compliance Workshop on June 27 in Louisville where subject matter experts will present insights for safety net hospitals to tap into the benefits of the 340B program, including increasing financial support that enables hospitals to provide better care, improve patient outcomes and help the indigent/uninsured gain access to the discounted medications they need.

View the program flyer...

KHA will host a very timely and informative seminar to assist member hospitals with swing beds in the transition to the Patient Driven Payment Model on June 27 at KHA Headquarters in Louisville.

The Patient Driven Payment Model (PDPM) is a new case-mix classification system for classifying skilled nursing facility (SB/SNF) patients in a Medicare Part A covered stay into payment groups under the SNF Prospective Payment System. Effective beginning October 1, 2019, PDPM will replace the current case-mix classification system, the Resource Utilization Group, Version IV (RUG-IV).

This program is intended to assist small rural PPS hospitals with training for their staff to ensure they have a good understanding of what is PDPM, what are the changes in the MDS and/or how will it impact their revenue. PDPM is not just a payment shift, it requires a cultural change in care delivery and care delivery models, as well as a clear understanding of what should be expected from staff in implementing new processes.

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KHA sponsor Qventus provides a comprehensive “system of action” that enables hospitals and health systems to optimize patient flow. Incorporating modern principles of behavioral, management and data science, the Qventus platform allows health care organizations to transform their operations by identifying bottlenecks before they occur, orchestrating actions among frontline teams and managing ongoing performance improvement.

With Qventus, leading hospitals and health systems such as Emory University Hospital, Fairview, Mercy, and New York Presbyterian have been able to significantly decrease length of stay, reduce excess days, increase patient volumes and more -- resulting in higher margins, improved caregiver well-being and enhanced patient care.

For additional information, visit www.qventus.com.

The Kentucky Department for Public Health (DPH) along with the Governor’s office is asking Kentucky hospitals for support in reaching at-risk populations in the quest to vaccinate for Hepatitis A. Please see the Department's letter and call to action for details.

This is an extremely important issue, so KHA has contacted hospital CEOs, CMOs and CNOs to act on this opportunity.

If you have any questions, please contact the DPH Immunization Team (502-564-4478).

KHA salutes Harrison Memorial Hospital and its CEO Sheila Currans for being the first hospital in the state as well as the first in Blue Grass District to join the Kentucky Statewide Opioid Stewardship (KY SOS). Currans joined the program at the Blue Grass District Meeting in March.

Opioid stewardship involves a coordinated effort to reduce opioid-related harm by developing alternative means to manage pain and, when opioids are used, assuring that opioid prescribing and patient monitoring aligns with evidence-based guidelines. KY SOS will focus on reducing opioid overprescribing and improving safe opioid use by providing hospitals and health systems with education and resources on how to attain the highest level of performance on opioid stewardship.

KHA is proud to lead the KY SOS program as hospitals...

The Kentucky Hospital Association (KHA) today announced that its board of directors has appointed Nancy Galvagni as President and Chief Executive Officer.

In December, long-time KHA President Michael T. Rust announced his retirement after 24 years with the organization. The KHA Board of Trustees then began a nationwide search for his successor. The organization engaged the services of Witt/Kieffer to conduct the search.

Galvagni has been with KHA since 1979 and has served as the senior vice president for the past 20 years. In addition, she has served as the executive director of the Kentucky Institute for Patient Safety and Quality (KIPSQ), a federally certified patient safety organization and subsidiary of KHA. She is a graduate of Pennsylvania State University, is a past president...

The Kentucky Health Information Management Association (KHIMA) will host its 2019 Annual Meeting June 3-4 in Richmond.

This year's theme is Navigating the Seas of HIM. Health Information Management (HIM) professionals have weathered many storms over the past several years, including MIPS, MACRA, value-based purchasing and health care reform just to name a few. When the seas finally calm, new storms approach. HIM professionals must grow and nurture their skills to be ready to weather the storms of heath care.

HIM professionals are invited to the conference to learn from experts and one another, about how to navigate the ever changing seas of HIM.

Online registration is available for your convenience.

In addition, the organization has secured a block of rooms at the Marriott in Richmond for a discounted rate. The following...

The Kentucky Hospital Association (KHA) held its yearly Awards Luncheon on May 10, as part of the 90^th Annual KHA Convention in Lexington. During the event, six hospitals from across the state were recognized with KHA Quality Awards. This award is presented to honor hospital leadership and innovation in quality, safety and commitment in patient care.

KHA and the Kentucky Hospital Research and Education Foundation (KHREF) are providing a one-day seminar for Critical Access Hospital (CAH) swing bed coordinators. The content of the seminar will promote swing bed program growth, care quality and compliance with Conditions of Participation. This program is provided to KHA CAH members through the Rural Hospital Flexibility Program. A registration fee of only $50 will be charged to cover meal expenses.

The program brochure provides agenda details. Online registration is available for your convenience.

If you have any questions, please contact Elizabeth Cobb at KHA (ecobb@kyha.com).



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An Awards Luncheon was the culminating event at the Kentucky Hospital Association 90th Annual Convention in Lexington, May 8-10.

The highlight of the luncheon was the installment of the 2019-2020 Chair of the KHA Board of Trustees Garren Colvin, chief executive officer of St. Elizabeth Healthcare in Edgewood. Colvin will begin his tenure as Chair on July 1.

Colvin has served as president and chief executive officer of St. Elizabeth Healthcare since June 2015. In January 2011, Colvin was named executive vice president and chief operating officer. Prior to 2011, he served as senior vice president and chief financial officer. He has more than 30 years of experience in the industry.

KHA’s...

Baptist Health will be rolling out the red carpet on Monday, May 6, for a movie premiere that will save the lives of thousands of Kentucky infants.

The movie, created by Prevent Child Abuse of Kentucky, educates caregivers about safe sleep practices and pediatric abusive head trauma. The Kentucky Hospital Association will distribute it to every birthing center in the state, meaning it will be viewed by more than 50,000 new parents each year in more than 100 hospitals.

WellCare Health Plans sponsored the video.

“With 54,000 live births in Kentucky each year, we know there’s a significant audience of new parents that can benefit from learning how to keep their babies as safe as possible,” stated Jill Seyfred, Executive Director, Prevent Child Abuse Kentucky.

The Kentucky Hospital Association, along with other key partners, will play an important role in ensuring this educational video reaches this sizable audience. “Becoming a new parent can be both overwhelming...

KHA is grateful for the support of its Annual Sponsors! Through their generous donations, KHA is better able to support its members and provide a wide array of services. Please join KHA in thanking Corporate Sponsor Qventus!

Qventus provides a comprehensive “system of action” that incorporated modern principles of behavioral, management and data science that enables hospitals and health systems to optimize patient flow.

For more information, visit the Qventus website at https://www.qventus.com/.

To become a sponsor, contact Claire Arant at KHA (carant@kyha.com).

The National Institute on Drug Abuse ranks Kentucky among the top 10 states with the highest opioid-related overdose deaths, and Kentucky’s hospitals are on the front line in the fight to help the state recover. To assist the state’s hospitals in this battle, the Kentucky Hospital Association (KHA) is partnering with the Cabinet for Health and Family Services as part of the Kentucky Opioid Response Effort (KORE) to launch the Kentucky Statewide Opioid Stewardship (KY SOS) program.

Opioid stewardship involves a coordinated effort to reduce opioid-related harm by developing alternative means to manage pain and, when opioids are used, assuring that opioid prescribing and patient monitoring aligns with evidence-based guidelines. KY SOS will focus on reducing opioid overprescribing and improving safe opioid use...