Quality and Patient Safety: The New Accountability

Format: Audio/video file (.wmv)
Estimated Duration: 60 minutes
Price: $225

OVERVIEW

Consumers, payers, policymakers and others increasingly are demanding accountability and transparency from health care providers in the quality and safety of health care services. Providers often are faced with a carrot-or-stick approach for improving quality while providing for better coordination that helps reduce harmful medical errors and infections. Even when there is a shared vision, questions arise when key players encounter differing vocabularies and definitions, inconsistent guidelines and redundant information demands. Ultimately, reporting, reimbursement, regulation and performance should combine into a unified approach to quality and patient safety.

As hospitals respond to the new accountability, they are being confronted with issues relating to hospital-acquired infections, hospital-acquired conditions and preventable adverse events. This Webinar, originally recorded May 20, covers key issues such as what the state of Texas requires to be reported, and when. How is hospital reimbursement affected? How are private payers responding to state and national initiatives? How should a hospital communicate with a patient when there has been a payment denial based on quality? What is the role of the hospital’s leadership with regard to reducing hospital-acquired infections, hospital-acquired conditions and preventable adverse events?  How are health information exchanges expected to address the quality, safety and efficiency of health care services? The presenters also will touch on safety and quality aspects of the new federal reform bill.

FACULTY

Yvonne Karen Puig is a partner with Fulbright & Jaworski LLP. She practices exclusively in the health care area, and represents hospitals, HMOs, medical schools and other institutional health care providers.

She has extensive experience in a variety of health law regulatory matters, including, but not limited to, EMTALA, credentialing, due process hearings and Joint Commission accreditation and compliance. Her trial experience includes complex litigation, such as representation of hospital systems, manufacturers and sellers of medical devices, and commercial litigation involving the health industry. Additionally, she has experience reviewing business arrangements among managed care providers and other statutory and regulatory compliance.
 
Matthew T. Wall, J.D., is associate general counsel with the Texas Hospital Association in Austin. Wall joined THA in August 1986. As one of three in-house attorneys, his responsibilities include legislative and regulatory advocacy, advising member hospitals on health law issues, and conducting health law research. Wall is a graduate of Rice University and The University of Houston College of Law. He is a member of the State Bar of Texas, the American Health Lawyers Association and is past chair of the council of the State Bar health law section.


The views expressed by the speaker do not necessarily reflect the policies or opinions of the Texas Hospital Association.