Aligning Forces for Quality: Improving Language Services Performance Measures

This portion of the Language Services Performance Measures guide provides a brief overview of the information contained within each section of the manual. It is intended for use as a quick reference to assist in the implementation of the Language Services performance measures. The sections of the manual are interrelated and have been designed to be used together

The Heart of the Matter: The Relationship Between Communities, Cardiovascular Services and Racial and Ethnic Gaps in Care

As part of an initiative to address racial/ethnic disparities in the diagnosis and treatment of heart disease, examines factors behind the segmentation of healthcare access and service patterns by income and insurance status and its effect on minorities

In Any Language: Improving the Quality and Availability of Language Services in Hospitals

Showcases initiatives and interventions implemented in ten hospitals participating in RWJF's Speaking Together initiative to measure and enhance language services delivery. Discusses factors for success, strategies for improvement, and lessons learned

Race, Ethnicity, and Language of Patients: Hospital Practices Regarding Collection of Information to Address Disparities in Health Care

2003 Institute of Medicine (IOM) report, Unequal Treatment: Confronting Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Health Care, identified strong evidence of disparities in the health care of racial and ethnic minorities not explained by differences in health insurance coverage and income. Among ways to eliminate these inequalities the IOM report recommended enhanced collection of patient race and ethnicity data. National Public Health and Hospital Institute researchers surveyed 500 non-federal acute care hospitals on their collection of patient race, ethnicity and preferred language information to understand data collection practices in the U.S. hospital industry. The researchers also surveyed 64 safety net hospitals — which typically have very diverse patient populations and presumed data collection experience — on their collection and use of patient race, ethnicity and language preference data. Key Findings: Most hospitals collect data about the race, ethnicity and language preference of their patients. Over three-quarters (78.4 percent) collect race information and one-half collect data on patient ethnicity (50.4 percent) and language preference (50.2 percent). Fewer than one in five hospitals use the data to assess and compare care quality, health services utilization, health outcomes or patient satisfaction. The most common barrier to data collection for hospitals that do not collect these data is the sense that the data are not important, with more than half of non-collecting hospitals identifying this as a barrier to collection. All of the surveyed safety net hospitals routinely collect race and ethnicity data, although only 20 percent have formal data collection policies. Eighty-four percent of these hospitals have a required field for race in their automated registration system and 28 percent have a field for ethnicity that is generally optional. While 80 percent have a field for language it is rarely required and its recording varies widely

Stresses to the Safety Net: The Public Hospital Perspective

Every year, more than 10 million people receive care from public hospitals and health systems – a complex and diverse set of providers that share a mission to deliver health services to individuals, regardless of insurance coverage or ability to pay. Together with federally funded health centers, free clinics, public health departments and scores of individual physicians and other health practitioners, public hospitals provide critical access points for the nation\u27s uninsured population and form a vast patchwork of providers that is commonly referred to as the health care safety net. Despite their importance, there is no single or stable source of financial support for public hospitals\u27 service to their communities. Safety net financing is fragmented; consequently, providers must knit together resources from many different funding sources to create a stream of revenue to cover the costs of providing a very broad range of services. Part 1 of this report describes those sources of revenue, demonstrating the significant role Medicaid plays in supporting the current public hospital safety net, documenting that nearly 40% of all safety net revenues are from Medicaid. It also highlights trends affecting the health of the safety net over the past decade. Part 2 describes particular challenges that safety net hospitals and health systems are experiencing as they attempt to rebound from the economic downturn of the early 2000s

Race, Ethnicity, and Language of Patients: Hospital Practices Regarding Collection of Information to Address Disparities in Health Care

2003 Institute of Medicine (IOM) report, Unequal Treatment: Confronting Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Health Care, identified strong evidence of disparities in the health care of racial and ethnic minorities not explained by differences in health insurance coverage and income. Among ways to eliminate these inequalities the IOM report recommended enhanced collection of patient race and ethnicity data. National Public Health and Hospital Institute researchers surveyed 500 non-federal acute care hospitals on their collection of patient race, ethnicity and preferred language information to understand data collection practices in the U.S. hospital industry. The researchers also surveyed 64 safety net hospitals — which typically have very diverse patient populations and presumed data collection experience — on their collection and use of patient race, ethnicity and language preference data. Key Findings: Most hospitals collect data about the race, ethnicity and language preference of their patients. Over three-quarters (78.4 percent) collect race information and one-half collect data on patient ethnicity (50.4 percent) and language preference (50.2 percent). Fewer than one in five hospitals use the data to assess and compare care quality, health services utilization, health outcomes or patient satisfaction. The most common barrier to data collection for hospitals that do not collect these data is the sense that the data are not important, with more than half of non-collecting hospitals identifying this as a barrier to collection. All of the surveyed safety net hospitals routinely collect race and ethnicity data, although only 20 percent have formal data collection policies. Eighty-four percent of these hospitals have a required field for race in their automated registration system and 28 percent have a field for ethnicity that is generally optional. While 80 percent have a field for language it is rarely required and its recording varies widely

Talking With Patients: How Hospitals Use Bilingual Clinicians and Staff to Care for Patients With Language Needs

Presents survey findings on bilingual clinicians, staff, interpreters, and volunteers providing language services; training and assessment; hospital policies; and their impact. Recommends explicit policies, robust assessments, and proactive approaches

Medicaid Coverage for Individuals in Jail Pending Disposition: Opportunities for Improved Health and Health Care at Lower Costs

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) provides an unprecedented opportunity for millions of poor men and women to obtain insurance coverage to address their substantial acute, chronic, physical and behavioral health care needs. The ACA raises Medicaid eligibility levels to 133 percent of poverty, thereby enabling adults with or without children to qualify for coverage. A substantial percentage of the newly eligible population will be jail-involved individuals – people who have had interactions with the legal system over the course of a year, including as an inmate at a county or city jail. Many of these individuals are in jail pending disposition; they have not been convicted of a crime but are nevertheless held as an inmate, often because they do not have the resources to satisfy bail requirements. Under current rules, individuals in jail pending disposition are ineligible for Medicaid services. They may enroll in the program but their status as an inmate results in their being ineligible for benefits. The ACA explicitly allows incarcerated individuals pending disposition to be classified as qualified to enroll in and receive services from health plans participating in state health insurance exchanges if they otherwise qualify for such coverage. Furthermore, individuals who satisfy bail requirements and are released into the community pending disposition will be eligible for Medicaid under the ACA if they meet income and other program requirements. This leaves a group of high need, low-income and vulnerable individuals left out of comprehensive health coverage because of their place of residence. This paper describes the jail population and offers 10 reasons why individuals in jail pending disposition should be eligible for Medicaid coverage. Covering individuals pending disposition through Medicaid: Targets a highly vulnerable group of poor adults with substantial physical, mental health and substance abuse needs Fulfills the spirit of the Affordable Care Act by increasing access to comprehensive coverage Advances equity Provides health insurance for a disproportionately chronically ill population Increases integration and coordination of care by reducing gaps in health care Positions jails as potential enrollment catchment areas for vulnerable populations Reduces health system, Social Security Supplemental Security Income, and criminal justice costs Provides access to health care at very low cost to states Advances public health and social stability Improves quality of care and data monitorin

Cable television and the Boston Public Schools

Thesis (M.C.P.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning, 1982.MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ROTCHBibliography: leaves 80-81.by Marsha Regenstein.M.C.P

America\u27s Public Hospitals and Health Systems, 2003: Results of the Annual NAPH Hospital Characteristics Survey

In 2003, members of the National Association of Public Hospitals and Health Systems continued to offer millions of uninsured and underserved individuals access to the medical services so critical for lifelong health and well-being. Delivering these services was difficult, however, given the economic downtown early in the decade and the resulting inadequacies associated with safety net financing. This report examines the operations and activities of NAPH members in 2003, presents the financial challenges they faced, describes the clinical and community services they provided, and profiles the patients they served