Ecumen is proud to be a partner in the important work of reducing the use of unnecessary antipsychotic drugs in all Minnesota nursing homes. The Minnesota Partnership to Improve Dementia Care recently announced its 2014 first quarter results, which exceeded the national reduction goal. Below is the full press release from Statis Health:

MINNESOTA NURSING HOMES EXCEED NATIONAL ANTIPSYCHOTIC MEDICATION REDUCTION GOAL

The Minnesota Partnership to Improve Dementia Care assisted Minnesota nursing homes to achieve a 15.7 percent reduction in the use of inappropriate antipsychotic medications; the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) national goal was a 15 percent reduction.

The Minnesota Partnership to Improve Dementia Care, led by Stratis Health, is pleased to announce that Minnesota nursing homes have succeeded in the difficult work of reducing the use of unnecessary and inappropriate antipsychotic medications. First quarter 2014 data recently released by CMS showed a reduction of 15.7 percent in Minnesota nursing homes. This success exceeded CMS’s national goal to reduce the use of antipsychotic medications for long-stay residents in nursing homes by 15 percent.

The Minnesota Partnership to Improve Dementia Care was formed in October 2012 to shape Minnesota’s response to the directive included in CMS’s National Partnership to Improve Dementia Care. This national directive was inspired by the findings of a 2011 report from the Office of the Inspector General. The report indicated that 83 percent of nursing home residents on antipsychotic medications did not have diagnoses that warranted the use of such medications. CMS established the National Partnership to Improve Dementia Care in Nursing Homes and began collaborating with state, various agencies, and stakeholder organizations to encourage nursing homes to reduce inappropriate and unnecessary antipsychotic medications. CMS’s national mandate included a tiered reduction plan, of which a 15 percent reduction by 2014 was the initial goal.

The Minnesota Partnership to Improve Dementia Care has:

• Completed a needs assessment

• Developed and distributed a physician letter that explains the reduction goal and asks for physician assistance in the efforts to reduce the use of inappropriate antipsychotic medications

• Developed a family resource that explains why antipsychotic medications are used and the importance of eliminating inappropriate use

• Provided technical assistance to reduce the use of antipsychotic medications in Minnesota nursing homes that have high rates of use

• Disseminated best practice alternatives nursing homes can use in place of antipsychotic medications

The partnership includes:

• Act on Alzheimer’s

• Aging Services of Minnesota

• The Alzheimer’s Association

• American Society for Consultant Pharmacists – Minnesota Chapter

• Care Providers of Minnesota

• Ecumen

• Minnesota Medical Directors Association

• Great Lakes Chapter of the Advanced Practice Nurses Association

• HealthEast Bethesda Hospital

• Minnesota Board on Aging

• Minnesota Department of Health

• Minnesota Department of Human Services

• Minnesota Hospital Association

• Minnesota Veterans Homes

• Office of the Ombudsman for Long Term Care

• Stratis Health

The Minnesota Partnership to Improve Dementia Care congratulates Minnesota nursing homes for achieving this outstanding reduction in the inappropriate and unnecessary use of antipsychotic medications. The partnership looks forward to shaping Minnesota’s efforts to achieve the second stage of goals that CMS is expected to announce in late 2014.

For more information about the Minnesota Partnership to Improve Dementia Care, contact Kristi Wergin, RN, BSN, CPHQ, Program Manager, Stratis Health, kwergin@stratishealth.org, 952-853-8561, or, Kathie Nichols, BSN, RN, CRRN, Nursing Home Liaison, Stratis Health, knichols@stratishealth.org, 952-853-8590.