The N.J. Department of Health’s Quality Improvement Advisory Committee (QIAC), chaired by Dr. Aline Holmes, met to review a report from the department’s Infection Control Assessments and Response Subcommittee.

The department has completed 20 dialysis facility assessments, covering all areas of infection control including staff training, policies and procedures and environmental cleaning. The team provided audit tools and resources and is encouraging all dialysis facilities to perform self-assessments with the tools.

Staff also reviewed recent developments in ambulatory care center healthcare-associated infection (HAI) reporting. The centers currently are reporting HAIs for breast, knee replacement and spine surgeries. The discussion also included a presentation on the national healthcare-associated infection report and how New Jersey compared to national rates.

The committee also discussed the future of recommended care measures reporting, and DOH indicated that there has been considerable progress on these process measures since 2009, with New Jersey performing at or above national rates in all measures. These measures will stop being reported in the next Hospital Performance Report. The group discussed whether the QIAC should start looking at certain outcome measures, such as mortality.

In other activity, the department reported on readiness assessments performed with the three Ebola-designated hospitals and a site visit to the state treatment hospital by staff from the National Ebola Treatment and Education Center, using the CDC Ebola Assessment Tool. Department staff also provided an update on Zika in New Jersey.

In addition, staff from the New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute reported on a project, funded by the Nicholson Foundation, to assess what’s working – and what’s not – in New Jersey and around the country to engage stakeholders in developing realistic solutions in several key focus areas. These areas include delivery system improvements that align payment and quality measures; quality metrics and transparency; legal and regulatory impediments and opportunities; payment structures, data and technology infrastructure; patient experience; and enrollment and access.