Your Resource for HQIC News and Learning Opportunities | March 2023
Do All Pressure Injuries Appear the Same?
Accurately classifying hospital-acquired pressure injuries (HAPIs) continues to pose a challenge for bedside nurses. Not all hospitals have trained, certified wound care nurses to identify and stage pressure injuries, which can present differently in patients from various multicultural backgrounds. Different patient skin tones do not fall under one pressure injury classification.

Leaders are responsible to provide interventions and tools that can enhance the knowledge of pressure injury assessment, staging, and documentation; increase the competencies of bedside nurses; and solidify nurses' expertise and comfort levels.

The HSAG HQIC website offers the injury classifications from the Pan Pacific Pressure Injury Alliance for dark skin tones, light skin tones, Asian skin tones, and older adults. Consider printing and posting these resources in your nursing units to assist in differentiating between the various skin tones when determining pressure injury stages. 
It Figures
The data show that HAPI rates have worsened since the baseline period of 2019 (lower rates are better).

Visit the HSAG HQIC Quality Improvement Innovation Portal (QIIP) to view your HAPI data by selecting the Measure Category of Other Harms and Measure of HAPI Stage 3 or Greater (PSI-3) or Hospital Acquired Pressure Ulcer (HAPU) Rate—All Stages.
* Rates are per 1,000 admissions.
Source: Medicare Fee-for-Service Claims Data. For additional details on measure specifications, please reference the HSAG HQIC Compendium of Measures. The baseline time period is 01/01/2019–12/31/2019 and current time period is 11/01/2021–10/31/2022.
The Flash: Resources
Find photos and descriptions for all stages of pressure injuries from the Pan Pacific Pressure Injury Classification System:
Critical Communication
HSAG Emergency Preparedness Planning (EPP) Webinar Series
3rd Wednesday of the month
3–3:45 p.m. PT, 6–6:45 p.m. ET
Is your facility prepared for an emergency?

Learn about topics such as the Hazard Vulnerability Assessment, Hospital Incident Command System, Business Continuity Planning, Care Coordination and Surge, Transportation, and more.
Events and Education
PFE Quickinar Series
Establishing a partnership with patients and families improves patient quality and safety—from admission to discharge. Discover how to keep patients and families at the center of care and engage staff to form an alliance with patients and families. 

1st & 3rd Thursdays. Next: March 2, 2023  | 1–1:30 p.m. ET
Phase 2: Care Coordination Quickinar Series
Continue your care coordination journey for managing avoidable hospital readmissions by registering for these short, 30-minute webinars—offered monthly through July 2023. Find details and recordings for past presentations on the webpage.

Next: Tuesday, March 7, 2023 | 2–2:30 p.m. ET
Health Equity
Quickinar Series
Achieving equitable care for all patients is a key priority for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), which is reflected in the new Hospital Commitment to Health Equity Structural Measure and Social Drivers Screening Measures in the Final Rule. These short, 30-minute presentations address the many facets and criteria hospitals will need to meet for these measures and assist your hospital in advancing health equity initiatives in alignment with CMS priorities.

2nd & 4th Thursdays. Next: March 9, 2023  | 1–1:30 p.m. ET
Successful Strategies of Rural Communities in the Opioid Pandemic
March 29, 2023 | 1 pm. ET
This webinar features proactive strategies to face the opioid epidemic in rural areas. Two successful critical access and rural hospitals will share their solutions to better engage patients, leaders, providers, frontline staff, and community members in initiatives to prevent opioid-related adverse drug events; address pain, substance misuse, and addiction; and identify patients with opioid use disorder to provide them access to medication-assisted treatments.

Objectives:
  • Gain insight on the prevalence of the opioid epidemic in rural areas.
  • Discover hospitals' challenges and local solutions to address the needs of rural communities.
  • Recognize the importance of connecting all community partners in the opioid response.

Continuing education credits available.
WoundCon Spring 2023:
Assessing Wounds in Patients With Skin of Color
March 10, 2023 | 9:35 a.m. ET
This learning event is part of the WoundCon all-day virtual conference that runs 7 a.m.–7:30 p.m. ET. There is a charge for this event. Visit the registration website for details.
References
1. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Person and Family Engagement Strategy: We’re Putting Patients First. Available at: https://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Quality-Initiatives-Patient-Assessment-Instruments/QualityInitiativesGenInfo/Person-and-Family-Engagement.
2. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). Guide to Patient and Family Engagement in Hospital Quality and Safety. Available at: https://www.ahrq.gov/patient-safety/patients-families/engagingfamilies/index.html.
This material was prepared by Health Services Advisory Group (HSAG), a Hospital Quality Improvement Contractor (HQIC) under contract with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Views expressed in this material do not necessarily reflect the official views or policy of CMS or HHS, and any reference to a specific product or entity herein does not constitute endorsement of that product or entity by CMS or HHS. Publication No XS-HQIC-XT-02282023-01