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QIO HHQI Weekly Update :: March 17, 2008   

TIP OF THE WEEK

Transitional Care Coordination and the Personal Health Record

A personal health record (PHR) can help facilitate communication between patients and caregivers, and it can help ensure continuity of planning across healthcare settings. It is important that patients understand what a PHR is and how they should manage its use.

COMPONENTS OF A PERSONAL HEALTH RECORD

(Source: University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, 2003)

  • Demographic and caregiver information
  • Healthcare provider information, including physicians and home care agency
  • Advance directive status
  • Medical history
  • Medications and allergies
  • Area to record test results, immunizations, and physician appointments
  • Checklist of activities that should precede hospital discharge and aid in the follow-up at home
  • Area for patients to write questions for their healthcare providers

PATIENT EDUCATION AND DISCUSSION POINTS FOR PHRS

  • Explain PHR and its components
  • Review and update PHR as needed
  • Encourage the patient to update and share the PHR with primary care practitioner or specialist at follow-up visits

For more information or to access a copy of an existing PHR, go to www.medqic.org and download the Transitional Care Coordination Best Practice Improvement Package.

 

RESOURCE SPOTLIGHT

Transitional Care Coordination Best Practice Intervention Package
This is a comprehensive manual for home health agency leadership and staff to identify tools and processes to improve patient transitions from one healthcare setting to another. Interventions focus on the four pillars, or conceptual domains, of patient transition. The package includes tools and resources for patients and staff, guidelines, and podcasts.

 

IN THE NEWS

CONFRONTING THE CHALLENGE OF ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE

March 10, 2008 -- NIH -- Drug resistance is making many diseases increasingly difficult — and sometimes impossible — to treat, according to Anthony S. Fauci, MD, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health. In a new report in the Journal of Infectious Diseases, now available online, Dr. Fauci outlines NIAID's commitment to addressing this urgent public health issue. | Read the Release | More on NIAID

SCIENTISTS SPOT BIOCHEMICAL SIGN OF DEPRESSION

March 12, 2008 -- HealthDay -- Researchers say they've discovered a biomarker for depression that could lead to a quick lab test to determine whether a particular antidepressant is making headway against the disease. | Read More

OHIO KEPRO EVENTS

COMING ATTRACTIONS

Health Policy Institute of Ohio: Regional Meetings on the Ohio Family Violence Prevention Project

 

The Tip of the Week Archive is available on the Ohio KePRO Web Site.