“Punch-a-Bug” Trivia Game Well Received By Mainers

Maine Punch-a-Bug GameAccording to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2017), “at least 80 million antibiotic prescriptions each year are unnecessary, which makes improving antibiotic prescribing and use a national priority.” To meet this urgency, the New England QIN-QIO Antimicrobial Stewardship Team in Maine developed a more interactive and engaging way to teach healthcare providers and beneficiaries about safe antibiotic prescribing and use.

Patient and Family Advisory Council Is Helping Create More Impactful Resources

PFAC

Providence, RI (October 2017) – Developing health care quality improvement resources and educational tools is a critical aspect of the work that Quality Innovation Network–Quality Improvement Organizations (QIN-QIO) undertake in their states. But for those resources to be effective, they need to resonate with their target audiences, including Medicare beneficiaries and other partners. This is often a challenge, as many QIN-QIOs operate in multiple states and reach thousands of different stakeholders.

New England QIN-QIO Encouraging Immunizations Via Latino Public Radio

Dr. Campanile at Latino Public Radio

Providence, RI (August 2017) – Immunizations are critically important in protecting older adults against serious and sometimes deadly diseases, such as the influenza virus or shingles. Yet, Kaiser Health News reported in 2015 that three out of four Americans older than 60 do not get the shingles vaccine, and one in three skip the influenza vaccine.

Cross-Setting Collaboration Improves Nursing Home Discharges Back to the Community

When a resident is discharged from a skilled nursing facility, efforts to avoid re-hospitalization go beyond the nursing facility; it takes a community effort to keep a resident at home. With a rise in readmissions from nursing home discharges to the community, a group of key stakeholders in southeastern Massachusetts are working together to help […]

Five Questions with Lauren Capizzo

Providence, RI (May 12, 2017) – Lauren Capizzo, Director, Practice Transformation, was featured in the Providence Business News 5 Questions Series.

New England QIN-QIO Sharing Data to Reduce Opioid-Related Adverse Drug Events

Pill bottole

Providence, RI (February 2017) – Medication-related adverse events are affecting record numbers of Medicare beneficiaries in the United States. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), opioids—including prescription drugs and heroin—killed more than 33,000 people in the U.S. in 2015. Among Medicare beneficiaries, six out of every 1,000 beneficiaries has an opioid misuse disorder—one of the fastest growing rates in the nation.

Awarded Two-Year Special Innovation Project – “Interventions that are Ready for Spread and Scalability”

MA Office Woburn, Massachusetts (October 17, 2016) — The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently awarded a two year Special Innovation Project, under Healthcentric Advisors’ New England Quality Innovation Network-Quality Improvement Organization (NE QIN-QIO) five-year master contract, to address unnecessary and potentially avoidable hospitalizations through the implementation of a systematic discharge process for skilled nursing facility patients being discharged back to the community.