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Grand plans for annual conference Nov. 2-5 in Nashville
Patient safety, compliance, regulatory, legal and risk financing issues all play key roles in the delivery of safe and trusted health care. These challenges will be presented as opportunities for forward-looking health care professionals Nov. 2-5 when ASHRM holds its 23rd Annual Conference & Exhibition – “Grand Ole Opportunity” – in Nashville.
While Nashville may be better known as “Music City,” the area also is home to more than 220 health care companies making it an appropriate setting for ASHRM’s “Grand Ole Opportunity.”
Attendees will learn how to:
* recognize and address risk exposures affecting the quality of care;
* determine the best ways to establish a culture of safety in an organization;
* develop effective loss reduction strategies, techniques and tools;
* align risk management decisions with enterprise-wide goals and principles.
Education options
ASHRM’s annual conference provides 48 education sessions led by a faculty of more than 50 health care industry leaders. Sessions will arm risk managers and patient safety officers – as well as quality managers, clinicians, insurance professionals, attorneys and other health care professionals – with information they can take away and apply at their own organizations.
Session topics are organized into education tracks and levels of experience to meet specialized needs. New this year is the Enterprise Risk Management track which will show how risk managers can go beyond traditional roles to handle risk organization-wide. Other tracks include Patient Safety, Risk Financing, Claims & Litigation, Legal & Regulatory and Special Topics (nursing home quality, peer review, the hospitalist health care model, obstetrics liability and more).
Keynote speakers
Keynote speakers at ASHRM’s Annual Conference & Exhibition will provide thought-provoking points-of-view. Atul Gawande, MD, surgical resident/New Yorker magazine writer (and author of the best-seller “Complications”) will talk about “The Imperfect Science of Medicine.” Former Secretary of Health and Human Services Donna Shalala, now president of the University of Miami, will inspire with her tales of triumph in the complex worlds of health care and academia.
Networking
More than 1,500 health care professionals are expected to take advantage of the educational and networking sessions. In addition, the profession’s largest trade show will showcase nearly 100 exhibitors who will demonstrate helpful products and services. For the convenience of attendees, all events are being presented within the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center in Nashville.
Rooms & Registration
A block of rooms has been reserved for the conference, however hotel accommodations are not included in the conference registration. Attendees must contact the hotel to make reservations, being sure to specify the American Society for Healthcare Risk Management when booking, at (877) OPRY-100.
For general information, visit the conference Web page. To request an advance program, call (312) 422-3980 or e-mail ashrm@aha.org.
NASHVILLE FUN FACTS
* Splashy, 7-foot fiberglass catfish are “swimming” around Nashville through Nov. 30. The city called on artists to turn the bountiful bottom-feeders into beautiful (or at least interesting) works of art for the special Catfish Out of Water citywide art festival. For details, call (615) 837-1151.
* Opryland Hotel, home of the Annual Conference & Exhibition, is the largest non-gaming hotel property in the United States, with 2,884 rooms and 288,000 square feet of exhibit space.
* Nashville's golden Athena Parthenos, standing 42 feet high, is the tallest indoor sculpture in the Western world. It’s inside the Parthenon replica at Centennial Park, West End Avenue near Vanderbilt University. For details, call (615) 862-8431 or e-mail info@parthenon.org.
* A driveway in the shape of a guitar can be found at The Hermitage, home of President Andrew Jackson. Nashvillians like to think it was a sign of good things to come. The Hermitage is located 12 miles east of downtown Nashville and is accessible from Interstate 40, exit 221. For details, call (615) 889-2941.
* Country music’s biggest stars will be in town for the Country Music Association’s “37th Annual CMA Awards,” which will be broadcast live Nov. 5 on CBS-TV from the Grand Ole Opry House. (Sorry, only CMA members can attend the broadcast, but keep your eyes open for star sightings.)
Members go online to elect new officers
ASHRM members went to the electronic polls this summer to participate in the organization’s first online elections.
Newly elected officers are:
* President-elect – Pamela Popp, Vice President-Claims Management and Insurance, Team Health, Knoxville, TN.
* Board of Directors (2-year terms) – Dorothy Berry, Vice President, Clinical Risk Management, GE ERC, Overland Park, KS, and Mary Ott, Director, Risk Management, Sisters of Mercy Health System, St. Louis.
* Board of Directors (3-year terms) – Douglas Borg, Director, Medical Center Risk Management, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, and June Leigh, Risk Control Director, CNA HealthPro, Chicago.
* Nominating Committee – Robert Bunting, Business Operations Analyst Specialist, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Georgia, Columbus, GA; Christine L. Clark, Director, Risk Management, West Suburban Hospital Medical Center, Oak Park, IL; Leilani Kicklighter, Corporate Director, Risk Management Services, Miami Jewish Home & Hospital for the Aged, Miami; Sandra Underhill, Director, Risk Management, CJW Medical Center, Richmond, VA; Kathleen Murray, Risk Manager, Boston Medical Center, Boston; Gordon Hall, Director Corporate Insurance, Clarian Health Partners, Indianapolis; and Theresa Tonies, Risk Compliance Officer, Humility of Mary Health Partners, Youngstown, OH.
The newly elected officers will be sworn into office Nov. 3 in Nashville during ASHRM’s annual business meeting and take office on Jan. 1. They will serve with President Jeff Driver and current board members Sherrill Peters, Mary Marta and Joyce Benton, whose terms will continue for one more year.
Membership survey results help set course
Results of the 2003 ASHRM membership survey are in. One of the most impressive statistics is the number of respondents to the survey – 13% of the total membership, which exceeds past participation in surveys and the response rates for similar surveys (which are generally closer to 5%).
The responses are enlightening and also affirm the direction and focus ASHRM is taking to advance the profession. ASHRM continues to be viewed by its members as a tremendous resource for professional development, networking, resources and recognition.
Here are highlights taken from the survey.
WORK ENVIRONMENT
ASHRM members continue to be primarily based in acute care settings (44% of respondents); other primary settings are academic medical centers, multi-service health care facilities and integrated delivery systems (each with about 7% of respondents). About 10% work for insurers.
More than a third hold the title of director/manager of risk management, and nearly a third report to the CEO of the organization.
Risk Manager Reports To
* Chief executive officer: 28.4%
* General counsel: 11.2%
* Chief operating officer: 9.5%
* Director of quality/performance improvement: 9.3%
* Chief financial officer: 7.7%
* Other: 33.9% (such as medical director, human resources director/vice president, chief nursing officer, dean/chancellor)
About 35% of respondents have been in risk management for more than 10 years.
The changing role of risk management in organizations was emphasized by the survey – nearly 60% of respondents indicated their department had been redesigned in the previous 12 months. The principal factor checked was the need to create a better focus on patient safety, followed by fragmentation of risk management efforts. A number of respondents indicated that staff reductions and increased risk financing/insurance responsibilities also led to the redesign.
ISSUES OF INTEREST
An impressive 95% of respondents agreed that ASHRM’s mission statement is representative of the risk management profession (“To advance safe and trusted patient-centered health care delivery, ASHRM promotes proactive and innovative management of organization-wide risk.”).
Nearly all respondents said ASHRM’s strategic goals of professional development, advocacy & representation, and operational effectiveness were clear to them and will serve the advancement of the profession. Specifically, professional development was cited by 40% as the most important strategic goal, followed by operational effectiveness (34%) and advocacy & representation (26%).
Three-fourths of respondents identified advancement of the risk management profession as the top area for the society to develop in the next 3-5 years. Also identified as especially important priorities for ASHRM to develop were collaboration with other organizations and development of Web-based education. (Information about the ways ASHRM is addressing some of these goals will be explained Nov. 2-5 during the 2003 Annual Conference & Exhibition in Nashville.)
The hottest issues in the next 3-5 years identified in the survey were (1) patient safety/support systems, (2) tort reform and (3) insurance/risk financing. Statistically, liability/tort reform is growing in importance as an issue – 46% of respondents cited it in 2002’s member survey compared to 54% this year. Another movement worth noting: Risk financing rocketed high onto the hot issues list after not even making 2002’s list.
Hot Issues in Next 3-5 Years
* Development of patient safety support systems: 55.2%
* Health care liability/tort reform: 54.4%
* Patient safety: 42.7%
* Medical error reduction: 37%
* Insurance/risk financing: 34.2%
FOCUS ON THE FUTURE
The survey indicates that many members are keeping up with the dynamic requirements of the health care risk management profession by participating in ASHRM’s Barton Modules education program (30%) and working toward the CPHRM exam (more than three-fourths of respondents agreed the CPHRM designation is helpful professionally).
Among the primary skills needed to face new health care challenges, the most important one according to survey respondents is collaboration with health care partners (medical staff, etc.). Other primary skills noted by half or more of the respondents: leadership/strategic planning (highlighting the value of risk management), administrative/operations and staff management, risk financing and legal.
Skills Needed To Face New Challenges
* Collaboration with health care partners (medical staff, etc.): 71.3%
* Leadership/strategic planning (highlighting value of RM): 60.9%
* Administrative/operations, staff management: 53.6%
* Risk financing: 49.8%
* Legal: 49.8%
* Conflict resolution: 47.3%
VALUE OF ASHRM
The annual membership survey informs and affirms the strategic direction ASHRM will take in the coming year by providing a gauge of member interest in various program and product offerings.
The Journal of Healthcare Risk Management was checked as the most beneficial member benefit by 82% of respondents, while the weekly e-News digest came in at 76%. By far the most preferred medium for ASHRM news is e-mail, favored by 88%.
Most Beneficial ASHRM Benefits
* Journal of Healthcare RM: 81.5%
* e-News: 76%
* ASHRM Web site: 64.5%
* Forum newsletter: 47%
* Discounts on programs, products: 27%
This spring’s redesign of www.ashrm.org fared well in the survey. Ease of use was rated good-to-excellent by more than two-thirds of respondents; value of content earned good-to-excellent ratings from three-fourths.
Networking opportunities are of major importance, as well, as evidenced by majority participation in local chapters (nearly two-thirds) and preference for face-to-face education programs (more than half).
Hospitals earn honors for promoting safety
Creation of a culture of safety is a common focus held by recipients of the American Hospital Quest for Quality honors announced July 29. Each of the hospitals and health system was cited for leadership and innovation in quality, safety and commitment to patient care.
Abington Memorial Hospital in Abington, PA, received the Quest for Quality Prize and $75,000. Finalists were Beaumont Hospitals in Royal Oak, MI, and the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics in Madison. Each finalist received $12,500. Olympic Medical Center in Port Angeles, WA, received the Citation of Merit.
Abington Memorial Hospital: The premise Abington Memorial’s Hospital Patient Safety Plan is that people make mistakes. The hospital’s systems-based approach does not absolve the individual of accountability but rather encourages staff to work to eliminate the next error.
Computerized physician order entry and web based patient monitoring, evidence-based medicine, community outreach, patient safety newsletters and patient safety suggestions boxes have helped integrate safety into the everyday workings of the hospital, as well. As a teaching hospital, Abington instills the philosophy of patient safety in medical and nursing trainees.
The risk management staff includes ASHRM members Sheila Stieritz and Cynthia Koeneman.
University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics-Madison: The leadership at the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics (UWHC) has made a strategic commitment to patient safety through investments in personnel and technology. The culture of safety is linked to staff accountabilities and job responsibilities and is evident in training and evaluation.
A patient safety committee oversees monitoring, evaluating and improving care. Disclosure policies based on open communication about errors and near misses are supported at all levels. Root cause analyses after all occurrences encourage employees to exchange ideas for improving the system. An annual Quality Week highlights UWHC’s patient safety initiatives to the public.
Beaumont Hospitals : Beaumont Hospitals integrate the culture of safety through leadership, education programs, and allocation of sufficient resources and personnel. Strong support from the board of trustees is evident, and the board has a subcommittee on safety.
Patient Safety Education tool kits with sample agendas, videos and case studies have been made available to all managers. A patient safety “Qualipalooza” is held so staff can present storyboards on patient safety; awards are given to nursing staff during Nurses’ Week to showcase notable patient safety efforts. A Partners in Safety brochure highlights cooperation between staff and patients.Risk manager Eva Jordano is a member of ASHRM.
Olympic Medical Center : A small, rural hospital, Olympic Medical Center (OMC) involves all stakeholders – patients, providers, all employees and its community – in safety efforts.
The hospital employs a generous flow of information on critical safety issues to support the prevention of adverse outcomes. Leadership and resource commitment can be seen in OMC’sinvestments in intensivists and educational opportunities.Risk manager Donna Davison is a member of ASHRM.
The American Hospital Quest for Quality Prize is awarded by the American Hospital Association. A multi-disciplinary committee of health care and patient safety experts awarded the prize to its honorees.
Applications for the 2004 prize are due Oct. 18, 2003. For details, contact questforquality@aha.org, call (312) 422-2700 or visit www.aha.org/questforquality.
Risk financing options to be covered
As the hard market continues, the importance of captives and other alternative risk financing options continues to be of great interest to health care organizations as a potential solution to risk management challenges.
A faculty of risk managers who have been through the captives process and other industry experts will gather Oct. 22-24 in Boston for IBC USA's 9th Annual Executive Forum on Captives.
ASHRM is supporting this event as an educational opportunity for new and seasoned risk managers alike. Nearly half of last year's attendees were risk management practitioners whose organizations either owned a captive or were considering alternative risk financing solutions to solve their hard market difficulties.
This year's focus is on health care and expanded programming on alternative risk financing options. Among the issues to be covered are:
* Evaluating the advantages and disadvantages of captives and other risk
financing mechanisms;
* Understanding what structure works best for particular needs;
* Practical strategies to maximize the value and effectiveness of a risk financing
program;
* Tax and regulatory considerations.
The program will be held at the Colonnade Hotel in Boston. ASHRM members are entitled to a 20 percent discount off the regular registration fee if they specify VIP Code KY5002A when registering. The complete program agenda is available at http://www.ibcusa.com/captives. For details, e-mail jhien@ibcusa.com.
NEW CPHRMS
The Certified Professional in Healthcare Risk Management designation provides a credential based on a solid assessment that verifies a broad-based knowledge of risk management. Certification elevates professionals in an increasingly competitive marketplace.
Congratulations to recent CPHRM achievers:
Denise Marie Allard, Midlothian, VA
Mark D. Anema, Dahlonega, GA
Emma M. Barksdale, Simpsonville, SC
Vivian Lynne Bishoff, Elizabethtown, KY
Barbara M. Centkowski, Forest Hills, NY
Christine L. Clark, Oak Park, IL
Jana Beth Deen, Cincinnati
Faye Eck, Springfield, MO
Henriettia Duncan Ellis, Brunswick, GA
Donna M. Fitts, Portsmouth, NH
Rae A. Hibner, Maywood, IL
Lila B. Holland, Dallas
John Legge, Durham, NC
Barry Louis Mangels Sr., San Diego
Michel A. Sagredo, San Francisco
Patricia S. Sanders, Lilburn, GA
Joseph M. Silvanic, Binghamton, NY
Alicia M. Snyder, Cantonment, FL
Donna Ray Taylor, Wauwatosa, WI
The Certified Professional in Healthcare Risk Management designation is offered through the American Hospital Association Certification Center.
The benefits of certification
Certification benefits everyone. Research shows it helps recruit and retain highly qualified, satisfied professionals. Employees are more likely to stay with a hospital that offers career development programs and professional recognition. And hospitals can take pride in knowing that the men and women who staff their facilities have met a national standard of competency that demonstrates they are among the best. What better message can be sent to patients and communities?
For details, call the AHA Certification Center at (312) 422-3715.
CPHRM Study Session Nov. 2 in Nashville
The editors of the CPHRM Study Guide will lead a study session Sunday, Nov. 2, in Nashville. For details, consult your Advance Program for ASHRM’s Annual Conference & Exhibition or visit www.ashrm.org (Annual Conference).
