Disclosure Toolkit and Disclosure Culture Assessment Tool

AHRQ Innovations Exchange | Disclosure Toolkit and Disclosure Culture Assessment Tool

The Disclosure Culture Assessment Tool enables organizations to determine their current cultural environment and structures needed around safety and disclosure of adverse events.

Simple, Patient-Friendly Informed Consent Process Increases Proportion of Patients Reading Form and Able to Describe Surgical Procedure

AHRQ Innovations Exchange | Simple, Patient-Friendly Informed Consent Process Increases Proportion of Patients Reading Form and Able to Describe Surgical Procedure

The purpose of this process is to promote patient understanding through the use of plain language principles and the "teach-back" method. The new form and consent process have increased the proportion of patients observed to be reading the form and who were able to describe their surgery in their own words, and enhanced patients' comfort level with asking questions. Anecdotal reports also suggest that patients, families, and nurses are satisfied with the enhanced process and form.

Scoring System Helps Choose Approaches and Devices for Safely Moving Patients, Leading to Fewer Staff Injuries and Lost Work Days

AHRQ Innovations Exchange | Scoring System Helps Choose Approaches and Devices for Safely Moving Patients, Leading to Fewer Staff Injuries and Lost Work Days

The program significantly reduced staff injuries and nearly eliminated lost and restricted staff work days associated with these injuries at Bay Pines. In addition, other Veterans Health Administration sites have also experienced significant reductions in staff injuries since implementing the program.

Expert Commentary: Multidisciplinary Hospital Team Proactively Meets With Patients and/or Families, Allowing Them to Better Deal With Unexpected Deaths and Other Negative Events

AHRQ Innovations Exchange | Expert Commentary: Multidisciplinary Hospital Team Proactively Meets With Patients and/or Families, Allowing Them to Better Deal With Unexpected Deaths and Other Negative Events

By establishing programs to help people recover emotionally after unexpected negative events, hospitals can achieve gains in patient satisfaction and in staff retention.

Three-Tiered Emotional Support System Generates Positive Feedback From Providers Who Become "Second Victims" of an Unanticipated Clinical Event

AHRQ Innovations Exchange | Three-Tiered Emotional Support System Generates Positive Feedback From Providers Who Become "Second Victims" of an Unanticipated Clinical Event

The goal is to help clinicians effectively manage negative emotional responses that might otherwise threaten future professional competence, patient care, and safety. Anecdotal feedback suggests that those professionals involved in such events have meaningfully benefited from the program.

Support Following Unexpected Clinical Events

AHRQ Innovations Exchange | Support Following Unexpected Clinical Events

The featured Innovations describe one hospital program that provides multidisciplinary team support to patients and families who experience an unexpected clinical event, and another program that provides support to clinicians who are the "secondary victims" of unexpected events.

2011 National Healthcare Disparities Report

AHRQ Innovations Exchange | 2011 National Healthcare Disparities Report

The 2011 report presents expanded analyses of care received by older Americans. It also addresses six priority areas for quality improvement, as identified in the National Strategy for Quality Improvement in Health Care report and presents novel strategies for improving quality and reducing disparities from AHRQ's Health Care Innovations Exchange.

Hospital Partnership Offers Pathways-Based Case Management Program, Leading to Enhanced Access to Appropriate Care for Uninsured

AHRQ Innovations Exchange | Hospital Partnership Offers Pathways-Based Case Management Program, Leading to Enhanced Access to Appropriate Care for Uninsured

The program also connects patients to other community resources and addresses health, social, and logistical barriers to care. The program significantly enhanced access to appropriate care and improved client understanding of their medical condition, resulting in enhanced health functioning and a significant decline in emergency department use and costs for nonemergent conditions.

Family-Oriented Program Combines Medical Care and Behavioral Counseling, Leading to Health Improvements in Obese Children and Adolescents

AHRQ Innovations Exchange | Family-Oriented Program Combines Medical Care and Behavioral Counseling, Leading to Health Improvements in Obese Children and Adolescents

Outcomes evaluation suggests that BrennerFIT participants have reduced their body mass index and cardiovascular risk factors, while post-implementation data and surveys show a low dropout rate and high levels of patient/family satisfaction with the program.

AIDS Care Project Makes Acupuncture Treatment Accessible to People Living With HIV/AIDS

AHRQ Innovations Exchange | AIDS Care Project Makes Acupuncture Treatment Accessible to People Living With HIV/AIDS

The program has enhanced access to acupuncture and herbal treatments for low-income individuals with HIV/AIDS and other chronic illnesses, reduced side effects from antiretroviral therapy, and alleviated pain in patients experiencing chronic pain.

State Health Department Support Spurs Development of Many Antimicrobial Stewardship Programs After Passage of Legislative Mandate

AHRQ Innovations Exchange | State Health Department Support Spurs Development of Many Antimicrobial Stewardship Programs After Passage of Legislative Mandate

Support includes recommendations on program elements based on best practices, consultations and education, hospital collaboratives to facilitate sharing of ideas across similar organizations, and creation of common metrics to track and benchmark performance. The initiative has played an important role in convincing many California hospitals to develop antimicrobial stewardship programs.

State Agency Promotes Integrated Mental Health and Addiction Treatment for Co-Occurring Disorders, Leading to Better Access and Positive Outcomes

AHRQ Innovations Exchange | State Agency Promotes Integrated Mental Health and Addiction Treatment for Co-Occurring Disorders, Leading to Better Access and Positive Outcomes

The policies include mandatory screening for both disorders using validated tools, a learning collaborative and evaluations to promote quality improvement, and financial incentives to clinics achieving various service benchmarks. The department also offers training to help providers with various issues related to these policies.

Insurer Provides Financial Incentives, Infrastructure, and Other Support to Stimulate Provider Participation in Quality Improvement Collaborations

AHRQ Innovations Exchange | Insurer Provides Financial Incentives, Infrastructure, and Other Support to Stimulate Provider Participation in Quality Improvement Collaborations

Participating providers take ownership over all activities, including data collection and analysis through a registry, regular performance reports, and periodic meetings to review data and identify and share best practices. This incentive and support structure has generated very high levels of provider participation in the collaborations, which, based on results from the four longest-running initiatives, have significantly improved quality, reduced costs, and generated a positive return on investment.

Health Care Policy Innovations

AHRQ Innovations Exchange | Health Care Policy Innovations

This issue’s featured Innovations describe an insurer’s incentive and support structure to stimulate quality improvement, a health care policy initiative implemented by the State of Connecticut, and a California state program that supports health care facilities in meeting a legislative mandate.

Exercise & Physical Activity: Your Everyday Guide from the National Institute on Aging

AHRQ Innovations Exchange | Exercise & Physical Activity: Your Everyday Guide from the National Institute on Aging
Guide includes sample exercises for endurance, strength, balance, and flexibility and a list of resources.

Advancing Pharmacy Health Literacy Practices Through Quality Improvement: Curricular Modules for Faculty

AHRQ Innovations Exchange | Advancing Pharmacy Health Literacy Practices Through Quality Improvement: Curricular Modules for Faculty

The modules consist of 17 activity guides with 4 accompanying PowerPoint presentations. Each activity guide includes a list of further resources.

Web-Based Service Helps Runaway and Homeless Adolescents Feel More Empowered About Health, Enhances Access to Quality Care

AHRQ Innovations Exchange | Web-Based Service Helps Runaway and Homeless Adolescents Feel More Empowered About Health, Enhances Access to Quality Care

Adolescents using the service report feeling more empowered and knowledgeable about their health, while program staff report multiple cases in which the service has enhanced access to and improved the quality of medical care.