The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recently released data which illustrates positive quality trends in quality measures and quality indicators.  The improved outcomes are based on the short-stay as well as long term care quality data.  Pressure sores are a leading cause for claims (second only to falls) and an improvement in this measure (high risk pressure ulcers) is especially exciting!  The other areas of improvement for long term care are activities of daily living (ADL), resident mobility and pain.   The short-stay quality measures showing improvement include delirium, pain and pressure ulcers. 

As we continue to transition to the MDS 3.0, electronic medical records and QIS surveys we may feel overwhelmed and maybe even a little defeated.   Enjoying positive, measurable outcomes will hopefully motivate our teams to stay focused, not settle for less than the highest quality and remember that our residents are counting on us to do the right things.  Thank you for all you do! 

To read more about the most recent quality measures/indicator data collected by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, access  their website at www.Medicare.gov