AHCA adds predictive data analytics to national quality initiative

The American Health Care Association (AHCA) has partnered with Lexington, Mass.-based PointRight to incorporate data analytics software into ACHA’s national Quality Initiative tool suite. The software will give nursing homes and other care sites the ability to use their own MDS 3.0 data to calculate case-mix adjusted hospital readmission rates.

AHCA’s Quality Initiative, launched earlier this year, provides tools for long-term care facilities to measure quality care performance and to build on industry benchmarks. The program focuses on performance areas that have been targeted by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for improvement, including 30-day hospital readmission rates.

“These analyses help skilled nursing centers focus on improving care for their residents. They also help centers demonstrate their value to hospitals, insurers and physician groups," said David Gifford, MD, MPH, Senior Vice President of Quality and Regulatory Affairs at AHCA, in a press statement. "Having timely, risk-adjusted information is key for our members, so they know how they are performing compared to others and how effective their efforts are in preventing hospital readmissions from occurring.”

The new tool also will give LTC facilities a statistical way to prove their quality care to providers and among competitors, which could serve as market leverage, Gifford adds.

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