Multidimensional Approach Reduces Anti-psychotic Use in Nursing Homes

Angie SzumlinskiUncategorized

More Great News!

National Partnership to Improve Dementia Care in Nursing Homes: Anti-psychotic Medication Use Data Report (July 2017)

The National Partnership to Improve Dementia Care in Nursing Homes is committed to improving the quality of care for individuals with dementia living in nursing homes. The National Partnership has a mission to deliver health care that is person-centered, comprehensive and interdisciplinary with a specific focus on protecting residents from being prescribed antipsychotic medications unless there is a valid, clinical indication and a systematic process to evaluate each individual’s need. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) promotes a multidimensional approach that includes; research, partnerships and state-based coalitions, revised surveyor guidance, training for providers and surveyors and public reporting. CMS is tracking the progress of the National Partnership by reviewing publicly reported measures. The official measure of the Partnership is the percentage of long-stay nursing home residents who are receiving an anti-psychotic medication, excluding those residents diagnosed with schizophrenia, Huntington’s Disease or Tourette’s Syndrome. In 2011Q4, 23.9 percent of long-stay nursing home residents were receiving an anti-psychotic medication; since then there has been a decrease of 34.1 percent to a national prevalence of 15.7 percent in 2017Q1. Success has varied by state and CMS region, with some states and regions having seen a reduction of greater than 35 percent.

Thank you for all you do for the residents you care for!

A four-quarter average of this measure is posted to the Nursing Home Compare website at https://www.medicare.gov/nursinghomecompare/

For more information on the National Partnership, please send correspondence to dnh_behavioralhealth@cms.hhs.gov

Full report: https://nhqualitycampaign.org/files/AP_package_20170717.pdf