As founding partners of a unique public-private collaboration to advance performance measurement in behavioral health, the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors (NASMHPD), the National Association of Psychiatric Health Systems (NAPHS), the NASMHPD Research Institute, Inc. (NRI), and the American Psychiatric Association (APA) today applauded The Joint Commission's (JC) announcement of the next phase of the 'Hospital-Based Inpatient Psychiatric Hospitals' (HBIPS) core measures initiative. See www.jointcommission.org/hbips for full details (see also Marketing and Licensing Agreements).
For nearly a decade, these behavioral healthcare associations representing state hospitals, private-sector provider organizations, and psychiatrists have pooled their resources and expertise to advance development of psychiatric core measures. Working with The Joint Commission, these groups helped to launch and implement a way for hospitals across the United States to gather and report publicly on key data elements that affect the course of an individual's psychiatric hospitalization from the moment they enter the facility through discharge (including the assessment process, the use of antipsychotic medications, seclusion and restraint, and discharge summary/aftercare).
'Today marks a historic step forward in performance measurement for inpatient psychiatric hospitals,' said NAPHS President/CEO Mark Covall. 'This is the first time that we will have standardized definitions and reporting requirements that will enable hospital leaders to view their own performance in comparison to their peers'. As part of the hospital accreditation process, the HBIPS requirements will generate national data that all constituencies - including those who receive care, those who deliver treatment, and those who pay for hospitalization - can use to better understand and enhance the inpatient hospital experience. HBIPS will provide actionable data, a way to help hospitals continuously improve care, and accountability. As with federal parity legislation and healthcare reform, the HBIPS initiative recognizes that behavioral health is integral to overall health.'
'HBIPS has followed a consensus-building approach throughout development of the measures, involving more than 50 organizations representing all constituencies - including consumers, families, providers, and researchers. We can be confident that these measures have been fully vetted and are 'core' to high-quality hospital-level treatment for psychiatric disorders,' said NASMHPD Executive Director Robert Glover, Ph.D.
'The extensive participation that we have seen from both public- and private-sector providers throughout the testing phase of HBIPS is a testament to the field's commitment to the power of data,' said NRI Executive Director Noel A. Mazade, Ph.D.
'HBIPS is the culmination of an inclusive, scientific approach to developing core measures for inpatient psychiatry that was conducted with the same rigor used to develop core measures for other areas of medicine such as heart disease and pregnancy,' said APA Medical Director/CEO James H. Scully, Jr., M.D.
Keywords: Hospital, Marketing and Licensing Agreements, Mental Health, National Association of Psychiatric Health Systems, Psychiatric, Psychiatry.
This article was prepared by Biotech Week editors from staff and other reports. Copyright 2010, Biotech Week via NewsRx.com.
