Quality and process improvement

Acumentra Health experts conduct audits of internal and delegated quality improvement (QI) functions to help healthcare organizations ensure regulatory or accreditation compliance.

While serving as Washington's External Quality Review Organization, Acumentra Health was one of the three states participating in CMS’ Quality Assurance Reform Initiative (1993–1995), helping to pioneer methods and approaches that have become standard quality assurance procedures. Acumentra Health has been a leading advocate of adoption of effective QI methods for improving performance, as part of state Medicaid quality oversight.

Collaborative improvement initiatives

Acumentra Health leads learning collaboratives that bring providers and health systems together to implement system changes that can improve clinical processes and outcomes.

• The Children’s Health Improvement Collaborative brought together Washington clinics to improve preventive care for children with asthma, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, or overweight.
• The Children’s Preventive Healthcare Initiative, also a Washington collaborative, helped providers improve childhood immunization and well child care rates.
  • This initiative was cited by The Commonwealth Fund as a best practice in state Medicaid quality improvement efforts.
• Acumentra Health led the pediatric care improvement track in the Washington State Collaborative on behalf of the Washington Medicaid program
• The Oregon Diabetes Collaboratives helped medical practices improve diabetes care through adoption of a chronic illness care model that included electronic capture of patient data and a team-based approach to care.
• To reduce the amount of provider time-out-of-office and travel costs, the Oregon Rural Collaborative piloted a “skinny” version of a Chronic Care Model (CCM) collaborative with rural practitioners, focusing on a subset of CCM domains and using distance learning technology and short sessions.
• Acumentra Health collaborated with the Oregon Asthma Program to provide training and technical assistance to clinicians, focused on using the CCM for change management.
• Acumentra Health convened Oregon Medicare managed care organizations, mental health organizations, and the state Seniors and People with Disabilities agency in a collaborative project to improve identification and treatment of depression in nursing homes residents. The project aimed to increase nursing home staff awareness of a state-funded behavioral health evaluation process, available to all residents.
• Our Oregon HAI Prevention Coalition supports Oregon hospitals in improving medical and surgical care.

Statewide initiatives

Acumentra Health has conducted many other statewide initiatives as well as provider training and education activities to improve care for the Medicaid and Medicare populations, including the Doctor’s Office Quality–Information Technology Initiative (EHR implementation support and care management) and the Culture & Medicine Project (cultural competence training for primary care practices).

Quality-of-care studies

Acumentra Health has designed and conducted many focused quality-of-care studies for use in QI efforts. Topics have included Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment; childhood immunizations; perinatal care; and asthma.

We have conducted a mental health quality-of-care study focused on coordination of care, assessment of cultural needs, client involvement in treatment planning, and other quality issues.

Tools and resources

Acumentra Health develops and provides a broad range of quality improvement tools and resources for healthcare professionals and organizations; topics have included heart failure patient education, breast cancer screening, influenza and pneumococcal immunization, and diabetes care.