Quality Innovation Network – Quality Improvement Organization

The Quality Innovation Network-Quality Improvement Organization (QIN-QIO) program helps the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) implement key elements of the Department of Health and Human Services’ National Quality Strategy and federal health reform efforts.

Superior Health Quality Alliance members MPRO, MetaStar, and Stratis Health organized as Lake Superior Quality Innovation Network work in partnership with patients, providers, and practitioners across organizations and care settings to achieve national quality goals. Lake Superior QIN serves:

• 3 states: Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin
• Nearly 2,500 health care organizations
• More than four million Medicare beneficiaries

See the breadth of our impact in this Lake Superior QIN fact sheet >

Medicare Quality Improvement Initiatives 2014 – 2019

CMS has set the following priorities for health care quality improvement to be implemented by its QIN-QIO program, from August 2014 through July 2019:

Improve cardiac health and reducing cardiac health care disparities

• Assist health care providers and home health agencies in reducing cardiac health care disparities through the spread of information and technical assistance
• Goal: to promote the prevention and treatment of chronic disease

Reduce disparities in diabetes care

• Educate health care providers using an electronic health record (EHR) on evidence-based practices related to HbA1c, lipids and eye exams to improve clinical outcomes
• Goal: to empower patients to effectively manage chronic disease

Improve prevention coordination through meaningful use of health information technology

• Assist providers, practitioners and hospitals in meeting meaningful use requirements and aligning meaningful use with other CMS reporting programs
• Goal: to improve the health for populations through the use of health information technology and foster community engagement for better coordination of care

Improve the coordination of care between health care settings

• Convene community providers and stakeholders to collaborate and improve transitions of care in the community and reduce readmissions
• Goal: to increase the amount of time patients spend at home rather than in the hospital and decrease the prevalence of adverse drug events contributing to patient harm

Improve quality through value-based payment, quality reporting and physician feedback reporting program

• Assist physicians in the Physician Quality Reporting System program (PQRS) value-based modifier program and assist hospitals with value-based payment performance
• Goal: to improve quality of care measures and avoid any associated penalties

Reduce healthcare-associated infections in hospitals

• Help hospitals to reduce healthcare-associated infections and increase patient and family engagement
• Goal: to increase the quality of patient care while eliminating patient harm

Reduce healthcare-acquired conditions in nursing homes

• Reduce healthcare-acquired conditions in nursing homes and decrease potentially avoidable hospitalizations
• Goal: to promote nursing home excellence and increase resident satisfaction and longevity