Administrative Memos

200411

FROM: Theodore O. Will, Chief Executive Officer
DATE: Aug 05, 2004
SUBJECT: Smoking Cessation Educational Conference CD-ROM
IPRO CONTACTS:

Charles Stimler, M.D., M.P.H., Medical Director, extension 514, Scott Crespy, PhD, Project Manager, extension 252

As you are aware, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has four disease topics for its national hospital quality improvement effort. The "Smoking Cessation Advice" quality indicator is unique among the CMS indicators in that it is the only indicator shared in common by three of the four topic areas; it appears as a separate indicator for the Acute Myocardial Infarction (AMI), Chronic Heart Failure (CHF), and Community Acquired Pneumonia (CAP) topics. This reflects the severe impact on public health caused by cigarette smoking in the Medicare population.

Since September 2003, IPRO, the New York State Medicare Quality Improvement Organization (QIO), has led a collaborative with over 100 NYS hospitals that are working together to develop and improve processes related to inpatient-based smoking assessment and cessation activities. This effort formally began on September 15, 2003 with an all day conference in Syracuse, New York and it is continuing through October 2004. IPRO is pleased to be able to share with your hospital a Windows Compatible CD-ROM containing a replay of the September 2003 conference (enclosed with this memorandum). Some of the valuable information presented on this CD-ROM includes background information on the public health importance of smoking cessation, characteristics of hospital programs that work, current activities of the New York State Department of Health in promoting smoking cessation, and descriptions of two different ongoing, successful, local hospital-based programs.

We hope that this CD-ROM will help your institution to develop or improve processes related to smoking cessation. After viewing the CD-ROM, please take a moment to complete the enclosed evaluation form. Should you have any questions regarding this memorandum, or for more information regarding this effort, please contact Scott Crespy, PhD, at (516) 326-7767, ext. 252, or Charles Stimler, MD, MPH, at ext. 514, or refer to the IPRO web site at www.ipro.org/smoking.