Focusing on Provider Quality Measurement: Continued Consensus and Feasibility Testing of Practice-Based Quality Measures for Primary Care Providers in Long-Term Care.

Medical providers in long-term care (LTC) use a unique skillset in delivering comprehensive resident care. Publicly reported quality measures (QMs) do not directly emphasize medical provider competency and their role in care. The impact of providers is understudied and to a large extent, unknown. Our objective was to define, test, and validate QMs to pragmatically measure the practice-based quality of medical providers in a pilot study. We included 7 North American LTC homes with data from practicing medical providers for LTC residents. We engaged in a 4-phased approach. In phase 1, experts rated 95 candidate QMs using 5 pragmatic-focused criteria in a RAND-modified Delphi process. Phase 2 involved specifying 37 QMs for collection (4 QMs were dropped during pilot testing). We created an abstraction manual and data collection tool for all QMs. Phase 3 involved a retrospective chart review in 7 LTC homes on 33 QMs with trained data abstractors. Data were sufficient to analyze performance for 26 QMs. Lastly, in phase 4 results and psychometric properties were reviewed with an expert panel. They ranked the tested measures for validity and feasibility for use by a nonphysician auditor to evaluate medical provider performance based on medical record review. In total, we examined data from 343 resident charts from 7 LTC homes and 49 providers. Our process yielded 10 QMs as being specified for measurement, feasible to collect, and had good test performance. This is the only study to systematically identify a subset of QMs for feasible collection from the medical record by various data collectors. This pragmatic approach to measuring practice-based quality and quantifying select medical provider competencies allows for the evaluation of individual and facility-level performance and facilitates quality improvement initiatives. Future work should perform broader testing and validate and refine operationalized QMs.

Physician Practice Characteristics Influencing Nurse Practitioner and Physician Assistant Care in Nursing Homes: A Scoping Review.

OBJECTIVES: Physicians, nurse practitioners (NPs), and physician assistants (PAs) are key to the effective delivery of medical care in nursing homes (NHs). Although several studies have reported on the relationship between the care delivered by a given discipline and specific clinical outcomes, the mediating effect of physician practice characteristics is unknown. A scoping review was conducted to determine whether studies examining the impact of NP and PA care in NHs have accounted for both the collaborative relationship between themselves and physicians as well as physician practice size and type. DESIGN: Scoping review. SETTINGS AND PARTICIPANTS: NH and NH residents. METHODS: Papers eligible for review included peer-reviewed studies written in English and that were quantitative in nature. Inclusion criteria required that more than 1 NH and more than a single NP or PA be included for the analysis. Further, the size of the NH studied must have equaled or exceeded 100 residents and more than 1 clinical outcome reported. Databases searched included Ovid MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, Web of Science; CINAHL, and AgeLine. RESULTS: A total of 1878 studies underwent abstract review of which 1719 were excluded. A full-text review of the remaining articles was completed (n = 157, as 2 articles could not be retrieved), of which 16 met eligibility criteria. The study designs were generally retrospective and quasi-experimental in nature. No randomized controlled studies were identified. Physician practice variables such as number of physicians, total practice case load, case mix, and the nature of the collaborative practice between NP/PA and MD were infrequently specified. In no reports was the type of physician practice characterized and no physician practice variables were adjusted for with regard to outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: None of the studies included in the review were found to have incorporated any physician variables into their outcome analyses. Before purporting equivalency between medical provider disciplines in NHs, future studies must, at the very least, consider the mediating effect of physician practice characteristics.

Perspectives of Physicians with Experience in Nursing Home Care on Telehealth Use During the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency.

BACKGROUND: Despite expanded access to telehealth services for Medicare beneficiaries in nursing homes (NHs) during the COVID-19 public health emergency, information on physicians' perspectives on the feasibility and challenges of telehealth provision for NH residents is lacking. OBJECTIVE: To examine physicians' perspectives on the appropriateness and challenges of providing telehealth in NHs. PARTICIPANTS: Medical directors or attending physicians in NHs. APPROACH: We conducted 35 semistructured interviews with members of the American Medical Directors Association from January 18 through January 29, 2021. Outcomes of the thematic analysis reflected perspectives of physicians experienced in NH care on telehealth use. MAIN MEASURES: The extent to which participants used telehealth in NHs, the perceived value of telehealth for NH residents, and barriers to telehealth provision. KEY RESULTS: Participants included 7 (20.0%) internists, 8 (22.9%) family physicians, and 18 (51.4%) geriatricians. Five common themes emerged: (1) direct care is needed to adequately care for residents in NHs; (2) telehealth may allow physicians to reach NH residents more flexibly during offsite hours and other scenarios when physicians cannot easily reach patients; (3) NH staff and other organizational resources are critical to the success of telehealth, but staff time is a major barrier to telehealth provision; (4) appropriateness of telehealth in NHs may be limited to certain resident populations and/or services; (5) conflicting views about whether telehealth use will be sustained over time in NHs. Subthemes included the role of resident-physician relationships in facilitating telehealth and the appropriateness of telehealth for residents with cognitive impairment. CONCLUSIONS: Participants had mixed views on the effectiveness of telehealth in NHs. Staff resources to facilitate telehealth and the limitations of telehealth for NH residents were the most raised issues. These findings suggest that physicians in NHs may not view telehealth as a suitable substitute for most in-person services.

Physician Practice in Ontario Nursing Homes: Defining Physician Commitment.

OBJECTIVES: To characterize the practice profile of nursing home (NH) physicians in Ontario, Canada. DESIGN: Population-based cross-sectional study. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: A total of 1527 most responsible physicians (MRPs) across 626 NHs in Ontario, Canada, for the calendar year, 2017. METHODS: We examined physician services within all publicly regulated and funded NH facilities. Descriptive summaries were generated to characterize MRPs and their practice patterns by the physician's primary practice location, the NH facility size, and the proportion of physician billings that occurred within NHs. Community sizes were classified into quintiles based on population size and assigned as urban or rural. The number of ministry-designated NH beds were assessed by quintiles to examine physician services by facility size. We also assessed the proportion of physician billings within NHs by quintiles. RESULTS: MRPs tended to be older, male, and practice family medicine. The majority of MRPs practiced in communities with populations exceeding 100,000 residents, although physicians with greater NH billings tended to practice in rural locations. The mean number of NH residents that a physician was MRP for was positively associated with the community size. Physicians provided care for more NH residents than they were assigned most responsible. Fifty-one percent of physicians were MRP for 90% of all NH residents. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Our work provides an exemplar for characterizing physician commitment in NHs, using 2 approaches, according to the NH specialist model. We demonstrated the medical practice characteristics, locations, and billing patterns of physicians within Ontario NHs. Future work can investigate the association between physician commitment and the quality of care provided to NH residents. A greater understanding of physician commitment may lead to the development of quality metrics based on physician practice patterns.

Clinical factors associated with recent medical care visits in nursing homes: a multi-site cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVES: We examined which resident-level clinical factors influence the provision of a recent medical care visit in nursing homes (NHs). DESIGN: Multi-site cross-sectional. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: We extracted data on 3,556 NH residents from 18 NH facilities in Ontario, Canada, who received at minimum, an admission and first-quarterly assessment with the Resident Assessment Instrument Minimum Data Set (MDS) 2.0 between November 1, 2009, and October 31, 2017. METHODS: We conducted a secondary analysis of routinely collected MDS 2.0 data. The provision of a recent medical care visit by a physician (or authorized clinician) was assessed in the 14-day period preceding a resident's first-quarterly MDS 2.0 assessment. We utilized best-subset multivariable logistic regression to model the adjusted associations between resident-level clinical factors and a recent medical care visit. RESULTS: Two thousand eight hundred fifty nine (80.4%) NH residents had one or more medical care visits prior to their first-quarterly MDS 2.0 assessment. Six clinically relevant factors were identified to be associated with recent medical care visits in the final model: exhibiting wandering behaviours (OR = 1.34, 95% CI 1.09 - 1.63), presence of a pressure ulcer (OR = 1.37, 95% CI 1.05 - 1.78), a urinary tract infection (UTI) (OR = 1.52, 95% CI 1.06 - 2.18), end-stage disease (OR = 9.70, 95% CI 1.32 - 71.02), new medication use (OR = 1.31, 95% CI 1.09 - 1.57), and analgesic use (OR = 1.24, 95% CI 1.03 - 1.49). CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Our findings suggest that resident-level clinical factors drive the provision of medical care visits following NH admission. Clinical factors associated with medical care visits align with the minimum competencies expected of physicians in NH practice, including managing safety risks, infections, medications, and death. Ensuring that NH physicians have opportunities to acquire and strengthen these competencies may be transformative to meet the ongoing needs of NH residents.

Defining the Role and Value of Physicians Who Primarily Practice in Nursing Homes: Perspectives of Nursing Home Physicians.

OBJECTIVE: To identify the perceptions of physicians with expertise in nursing home care on the value of physicians who primarily practice in nursing homes, often referred to as "SNFists," with the goal of enriching our understanding of specialization in nursing home care. DESIGN: Qualitative analysis of semistructured interviews. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Virtual interviews conducted January 18-29, 2021. Participants included 35 physicians across the United States, who currently or previously served as medical directors or attending physicians in nursing homes. METHODS: Interviews were conducted virtually on Zoom and professionally transcribed. Outcomes were themes resulting from thematic analysis. RESULTS: Participants had a mean 19.5 (SD = 11.3) years of experience working in nursing homes; 17 (48.6%) were female; the most common medical specializations were geriatrics (18; 51.4%), family medicine (8; 22.9%), internal medicine (7; 20.0%), physiatry (1; 2.9%), and pulmonology (1; 2.9%). Ten (28.6%) participants were SNFists. We identified 6 themes emphasized by participants: (1) An unclear definition and loose qualifications for SNFists may affect the quality of care; (2) Specific competencies are needed to be a "good SNFist"; (3) SNFists are distinguished by their unique practice approach and often provide services that are unbillable or underreimbursed; (4) SNFists achieve better outcomes, but opinions varied on performance measures; (5) SNFists may contribute to discontinuity of care; (6) SNFists remained in nursing homes during the COVID-19 pandemic. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: There is a strong consensus among physicians with expertise in nursing home care that SNFists provide higher quality care for residents than other physicians. However, a uniform definition of a SNFist based on competencies in addition to standardized performance measures are needed. Unbillable and underreimbursed services create disincentives to physicians becoming SNFists. Policy makers may consider modifying Medicare reimbursements to incentivize more physicians to specialize in nursing home care.

Defining the Core Skills and Activities of the Attending Physician in Post-Acute and Long-Term Care.

The American Board of Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine (ABPLM) contracted with a psychometric firm to perform a 3-phase Job Analysis following best practices. Literature was reviewed, a task force of subject matter experts was convened, a survey was developed and sent via Survey Monkey to attending physicians practicing in post-acute and long-term care settings (PALTC). The task force refined a comprehensive list of the tasks, knowledge, and medical knowledge needed in the role of attending physician in PALTC. These items were written as statements and edited until consensus was reached on their accuracy, conciseness, and lack of overlap. Task statements described distinct, identifiable, and specific practice-related activities relevant across multiple care settings. Knowledge statements described previously acquired information considered necessary to effectively perform such tasks. The survey consisted of 260 items, including 21 demographic questions, 115 task statements, 73 knowledge statements, and 72 medical knowledge statements. The survey was disseminated via e-mail invitations to Society for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care (AMDA) members and through an online link available through ABPLM's website. A total of 389 respondents participated. Survey data were analyzed with statistical analysis software SPSS. For each task and knowledge statement, an Overall Task Rating and Knowledge Rating were developed by combining the importance rating weighted at 65% and (for task) the frequency rating or (for knowledge) the cognitive level weighted at 35%. One task statement and 1 medical knowledge statement had a mean importance rating lower than 2.5 and were dropped from further review, resulting in a final count of 114 task, 73 knowledge, and 71 medical knowledge statements (258 total). The results of this Job Analysis highlight the unique and specific nature of medical care provided by attending physicians across a range of PALTC settings. These findings lay a foundation for Focused Practice Designation or Subspecialty in PALTC and changes in practice and policy.

Medical Care Delivery in U.S. Nursing Homes: Current and Future Practice.

The delivery of medical care services in U.S. nursing homes (NHs) is dependent on a workforce that comprises physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants. Each of these disciplines operates under a unique regulatory framework while adhering to common standards of care. NH provider characteristics and their roles in NH care can illuminate potential links to clinical outcomes and overall quality of care with important policy and cost implications. This perspective provides an overview of what is currently known about medical provider practice in NH and organizational models of practice. Links to quality, both conceptual and established, are presented as is a research and policy agenda that addresses the gaps in the evidence base within the context of our ever-changing health care landscape.

The Seniors Quality Leap Initiative (SQLI): An International Collaborative to Improve Quality in Long-Term Care.

OBJECTIVES: To describe an innovative Canadian and US community of practice that employs empirical evidence based on risk-adjusted indicators to guide collaborative initiatives to improve the quality of care in nursing homes. DESIGN: Ongoing study of quality of care related to pain management in nursing home residents using clinical assessment records. SETTING: and Participants: Nursing home residents in 14 organizations in Canada and the United States between 2014 and 2017. The most recent analytic samples for quality indicator calculation involve 11,123 unique residents in 68 homes associated with 12 different long-term care organizations. MEASURES: Assessment data on pain and associated risk adjusters were obtained from the RAI/MDS 2.0 and MDS 3.0 assessments in Canadian and US nursing homes, respectively. RESULTS: The Seniors Quality Leap Initiative has been functioning as an active community of practice for almost a decade with the aim of demonstrating leadership in the use of collaborative approaches to drive evidence-informed improvements in the quality of long-term care. Initiatives with a specific emphasis on improving care related to pain resulted in notable improvements in quality of clinical care in specific homes as well as within the network as a whole. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: The Seniors Quality Leap Initiative demonstrates that a partnership between organizations in 2 countries can foment quality transitions through a shared commitment to identifying needs; employing flexible, but practical initiatives; and evaluating the impact of those initiatives through a transparent reporting mechanism.