The Nursing Home Quality Initiative (NHQI) is a national effort led by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to improve the quality of nursing home care in the United States through accountability and public disclosure. The initiative supports health care providers in improving quality of care for nursing home residents and helps equip consumers with information to help them make more informed health care decisions.
Our Progress
Since 2002, Oklahoma nursing homes have worked hand-in-hand with OFMQ to improve the quality of life for their residents as part of the NHQI. OFMQ provides training, and assistance with interventions and tools to help nursing homes improve selected quality measures. And nursing homes throughout Oklahoma are strategically transitioning from an institutional enviornment to a person-centered model of care. OFMQ has helped lead this culture change movement with expert consulting resources and best practices.
OFMQ has key partnerships with the State Department of Health, Oklahoma Association of Health Care Providers, Oklahoma Association of Homes and Services for the Aging, State Ombudsman's Office, Oklahoma Nurses Association, Oklahoma Medical Directors Association, Oklahoma Health Care Authority, Oklahoma Directors of Nursing Association. These relationships expand our collective knowledge and resources, improve communication among all parties and help to achieve greater and more immediate improvements in the quality of nursing home care.
Current Program Focus:
Quality improvement efforts in the nursing home setting are focused on clinical topics important to Oklahoma's Medicare beneficiaries and that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has identified as national priorities. OFMQ collaborates with Oklahoma nursing homes to help improve performance in quality of care for these topics. Through consulting, training, special events we provide Oklahoma's nursing homes with new technology, resources and tools to evaluate and track performance and develop strategies to improve care.
The national priority clinical topics for the nursing home setting are:
- Physical Restraints
- High-Risk Pressure Ulcers
- Chronic Pain
- Depression
We continue to focus on creating transformational change in the nursing home culture, building a person-centered and quality-focused environment with open communication and empowerment at all levels of the organization. Nursing homes are actively working to understand staff satisfaction and turnover issues and develop strategies to improve retention rates in certified nursing assistants.