email from Minnesota Stroke Digest - November 2012

You need to ask for the bolded information from your hospital wherever it is. See how pathetic it is and then ask what they are doing to replace it with. I list 11 options here;

You are subscribed to Minnesota Stroke Partnership Announcements for Minnesota Department of Health. This information has recently been updated, and is now available.

Dear Minnesota Stroke Partners,

This month's  Minnesota Stroke Digest features an important announcement on hospital quality measure reporting on stroke from the Minnesota Department of Health.  The 2012 amendments to Minnesota Rules, Chapter 4654, Permanent Rules Relating to Health Care Quality Measures, were approved by the Office of Administrative Hearings on October 16, 2012, and were published in the November 13, 2012, edition of the State Register. The adopted rule and appendices are available at http://www.health.state.mn.us/healthreform/measurement/adoptedrule/index.html.

For the “Emergency Department Stroke Registry” indicators, there is a change in this year’s rule: the “NIHSS Performed in Initial Evaluation” indicator was removed. This indicator will no longer required to be reported for patients discharged on and after July 1, 2012.

The stroke data reporting tool, Minnesota Stroke Registry Tool (MSRT), will be modified as soon as possible to accommodate this change. This element (“NIHSS”) will remain visible as an “optional” data element – since it is still required on eligible patient cases discharged between July 1, 2011 (Q1 2011) and June 30, 2012 (Q2 2012), and some hospitals have not completed reporting through this date yet. (Incidentally, the deadline for Q2 2012 reporting is in two days - Thursday, November 15.) Hospitals may continue to collect and report on this indicator for patients discharged on and after July 1, 2012, but it will not be required for SQRMS reporting.

Two final notes:

• Reporting on “Door-to-Imaging Performed Time” will continue to be required of all hospitals.
• Hospitals participating in the Minnesota Stroke Registry Program will continue to collect data on both indicators. 

If you have any questions, please contact our team at health.stroke@state.mn.us.

Also, please keep watching the Minnesota Stroke Partnership website for updates on activities of the Steering Committee and our partners.  The Minnesota Stroke Partnership Steering Committee will lead the implementation of tactics and strategies specific to stroke in the Minnesota Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention Plan: 2011-2020.  Periodic updates on the steering committee's work will be added to the MSP website, and shared with all of you via these periodic emails.  The Resources page includes many useful items for stroke care professionals, including the following:

• Stroke Guidelines and Best Practices Resource Guide - Comprehensive online bibliography on prevention, emergency care, clinical treatment, medical management, and rehabilitation medicine for stroke.  This online tool is continually reviewed and updated (last updated in October 2012) by a team of stroke care experts in Minnesota.
• Minnesota Public Service Announcement - Stroke Signs & Symptoms - A 30-second YouTube clip utilizing rural Minnesota EMS professionals to spread the word on Signs & Symptoms of Stroke.  Find a way to use this clip in your organization or community! 
• Minnesota EMS and ED Stroke Consensus Statement - A short document outlining best practice standards and guidelines for the emergency transport and care of stroke partients.  Includes resources to help hospitals and EMS agencies meet high standards of care (last updated in May 2012).
  As always, please send any questions or comments to health.stroke@state.mn.us .
  Sincerely,
  Jim
  James Peacock, PhD, MPH
  Epidemiologist Senior
  Heart Disease & Stroke Prevention Unit
  Minnesota Department of Health
  PO Box 64882
  St. Paul, MN 55164-0882
  (651) 201-5405
  james.peacock@state.mn.us