Administrative Memos

200202

FROM: Theodore O. Will, Chief Executive Officer
DATE: Dec 04, 2002
SUBJECT: Home Health OBQI Training Sessions
IPRO CONTACTS:

Sara Butterfield, Administrator, Healthcare Quality Improvement Extension 104

In support of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Home Health Outcomes-Based Quality Improvement (OBQI) Initiative, IPRO, the Medicare Quality Improvement Organization (QIO) for New York, will be offering two additional training sessions on the OBQI process for Medicare certified home health agencies.

The target audience for training will be limited to agencies meeting the following criteria:

agencies who were not able to send staff to the training sessions conducted by IPRO in 2001,
agencies who no longer have any OBQI-trained staff left within their employ,
agencies identified by IPRO with special circumstances requiring additional training.

The training programs will include an upstate and downstate location within New York State as follows:

Albany Region - January 21-22, 2003
Long Island Region - January 28-29, 2003

Recommended attendance for the 1½ day training includes two representatives from your agency. As this is a train-the-trainer program, one of the participants should have direct responsibility for quality improvement activities. Other attendees may represent administration and/or clinical areas. Due to space limitations attendance will be confirmed for the earliest responders.

If your agency meets the above criteria, we strongly encourage you to take advantage of this opportunity to participate in training as it is anticipated that the OBQI process will serve as the basis for future home health quality improvement initiatives. Your participation will provide you with an opportunity to focus on improving outcomes for your patient population.

If you would like to participate in one of the training programs, please complete the three attached registration documents and return via fax to (518) 426-3418 by December 16, 2002. If you have questions or would like additional information, please contact Sara Butterfield in the Albany IPRO office at 1-800-233-0360 Ext. 104.

We look forward to working with you on this valuable initiative!