Quality Care/Best Practices
The number one priority of the Washington State Medical Association (WSMA) is to make Washington a better place to practice medicine and to receive care. Improving the quality of care in our state is of utmost important to the WSMA and our physician members.
WSMA Preceptor and Other News
WSMA Preceptor
Read WSMA Preceptor which is our 4-page quarterly publication on news and comment. Our goal with Preceptor is to better inform physicians and practice managers about the emerging performance, costs and quality measurements that are becoming integral to health care. This link is password-protected.
The SCOAP Surgical Checklist Coalition
WSMA is an active member of the SCOAP Surgical Checklist Coalition which is working to place a SCOAP Surgical Checklist in every OR across Washington State by the end of 2009. This initiative will ensure that the necessary steps for safe surgery are consistently conducted thus reducing the risk of unnecessary surgical complications. The SCOAP Surgical Checklist promotes better communication and supports the use of best practices in the OR. The checklist is easy to use and takes minimal time to perform - time well spent in the interest of patient safety. See an informational video on the SCOAP Surgical Checklist and a demonstration of how to use it in the OR.
Important rule changes from the MQAC
The Washington State Medical Quality Assurance Commission website has posted important rule changes, including those for treating partners of patients chlamydia and gonorrhea, as well as the rules regarding laser, light, radiofrequency, and plasma device. Also posted is information on new fee increases as of August 1st, 2008. Go to the MQAC webpage to read more about these and other important changes.
Survey shows hospital patients satisfied with some aspects of care, dissatisfied with other aspects
The first-ever nationwide hospital quality survey by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services found that 67% of patients said they would “definitely recommend” the facility in which they received treatment to friends and relatives and that 63% gave their hospitals a nine or 10 rating on a scale of zero to 10. However, many patients reported being dissatisfied with some aspect of their care, the survey found, from noisy rooms at night to a lack of instructions at discharge.
The survey was released on March 28. Randomly selected patients at more than 2,500 hospitals nationwide completed a questionnaire from October 2006 to June 2007. The survey asked 27 questions, such as how well physicians, nurses and other hospital providers handled complaints of pain, how well they listened to patients and whether they treated patients with respect. The online results also show hospitals’ performance on a number of clinical measures.
See how Washington hospitals fared.
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Helpful Search Engines
Epocrates Drug Search Tool
Discounted all-in-one mobile guide to drugs, diseases, and diagnostics.
WSMA members can now receive 20% off all Epocrates paid products. For a flyer on Epocrates products click here.
mdconsult.com
MD Consult brings leading medical resources together into one integrated online service to help you efficiently find answers to pressing clinical questions and make better treatment decisions. MD Consult has been adopted by more than 90% of North American medical schools and is used in over 1,700 healthcare organizations worldwide. With over a quarter million physician and professional users, MD Consult is the most respected online clinical information service.
Use of MD Consult requires paid subscription.
medworm.com
MedWorm is a medical RSS feed provider as well as a search engine built on data collected from RSS feeds. RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication and it is a technology used to simply publish and gather details of the very latest information on the internet.
MedWorm collects updates from over 5500 authoritative data sources (growing each day) via RSS feeds. From the data collected, MedWorm provides new outgoing RSS feeds on various medical categories that you can subscribe to, via the free MedWorm online service, or another RSS reader of your choice, such as Bloglines, Newsgator, Google Reader or FeedDemon.
Subscribing to MedWorm is free.
pogofrog.com
PogoFrog.com is a medical search engine for physicians. PogoFrog.com "jumps over the layman-focused clutter on the internet to find only credible medical information for physicians."
Subscribing to PogoFrog.com is free.
uptodate.com
UpToDate is an evidence based, peer reviewed information resource - available via the Web, desktop, and PDA. The UpToDate community includes our faculty of more than 3,800 leading physicians, peer reviewers, and editors and nearly 320,000 users. Our faculty writes topic reviews that include a synthesis of the literature, the latest evidence, and specific recommendations for patient care. Our users provide feedback to the editorial group. This community's combined efforts result in the most trusted, unbiased medical information available.
Use of UpToDate requires paid subscription.
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Guidelines
Clinical Laboratory Advisory Council (CLAC): Practice Guidelines
Practice guidelines as provided by Washington State Clinical Laboratory Advisory Council.
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WSMERF Guidelines
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Lasers in Skin Care Treatment
Rules pertaining to the use of laser, light, radiofrequency and plasma devices, adopted by the Washington State Medical Quality Assurance Commission.
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Medical Records Retention Guidelines
Guidelines on Retention of Medical Records when Closing a Practice from the Department of Health. [PDF]
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Medical Treatment Guidelines
The Department of Labor and Industries published Medical Treatment Guidelines, which cover 21 conditions, as an educational tool for medical providers treating injured workers.
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Office-Based Anesthesia Guidelines
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Pain Management Guidelines
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Self-Prescribing or Treatment of Family Members
Self-Treatment or Treatment of Immediate Family Members from the Department of Health. [PDF]
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Sexual Misconduct Statement and Policy
Sexual Misconduct Statement and Policy of the Medical Quality Assurance Commission from the Department of Health. [PDF]
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Resources
Child Profile
WSMA encourages all member physicians providing childhood immunization services to fully utilize the CHILD Profile system by enrolling all of their pediatric patients in this electronic immunizations registry and maintaining accurate, up-to-date immunization profiles on these patients.
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Death With Dignity Act Information
The Department of Health has developed a website for Death with Dignity Act information. The website address is www.doh.wa.gov/dwda.
The site contains links to:
Please note the Pharmacy Dispensing Record form [PDF] has been updated to include the patient's address, and all forms have a new mailing address P.O. Box 47856.
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Free Medical Books
Over the next few years, many important medical textbooks will be available online, free and in full-text.
More information on these free resources.
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Genetics Testing
The AMA is offering Genetics in Clinical Practice: A Team Approach, an Interactive Medical Laboratory Virtual Clinic. This CD-ROM is now available at no cost to physicians and other health care professionals that have an interest in clinical genetics.
The program content focuses on simulated patients, who have - or are at risk of developing - four different diseases. It covers the assessment and counseling of patients; provides case-based learning, which allows you to explore the medical and psychosocial dimensions of genetic counseling; and includes mini-lectures from experts in the field. A patient interview feature allows users to hear how genetic conditions (breast cancer, myotonic dystrophy, sickle cell anemia and osteogenesis imperfecta) have affected the lives and families of real patients.
Limited copies of the CD-ROM are available. Send an email request that includes your name, shipping address and telephone number.
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Medical Marijuana
In November 1998, Washington voters passed Initiative 692 regarding the use of marijuana for certain terminal or debilitating conditions. The initiative became law on December 3, 1998.
Frequently asked questions about the law, including a downloadable Documentation of Physician Authorization to Engage in the Medical Use of Marijuana Form.
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Physicians Desk Reference - MobilePDR (TM) - free download
Clinicians with a Palm Pilot, Compaq IPAQ or other PDA can now download "mobilePDR" for free, gaining instant access to concise drug information for the 1,500 most prescribed drugs.
Learn more.
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STD Partner Treatment
Policy regarding treating partners of patients who have an STD, adopted by the Washington State Medical Quality Assurance Commission.
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