Date Available

4-26-2018

Year of Publication

2018

Degree Name

Doctor of Nursing Practice

Advisor

Dr. Julie Ossege

Committee Member

Dr. Lynne Jensen

Committee Member

Dr. Elizabeth Tovar

Abstract

PURPOSE: The purpose of this quality improvement project was to improve rates of nutrition screening and weight management in a Family and Community Medicine Clinic.

METHODS: This study was among several quality improvement projects being conducted at a Family and Community Medicine Clinic aimed at improving patient outcomes and quality measures for reimbursement beginning in 2019. Rapid cycle quality improvement was used to identify problems, implement changes, and evaluate workflow at the clinic in order to improve rates of compliance in BMI screening and documentation of weight management plans. Three PDSA cycles were completed. Activities included observation, staff education, visual aids, focus groups and evaluation.

RESULTS: Documentation of a weight management plan for patients with a BMI over 30 improved from 0% to 34% over the course of three PDSA cycles.

CONCLUSION: Future quality improvement projects aimed at improving rates of nutrition screening and intervention would likely benefit from updates to the electronic health record (EHR), as well as adding scheduled time for patient rooming. Both interventions could improve the quality and completeness of screening and preventative MACRA measures (Including colorectal cancer screening, tobacco assessment and cessation management, vaccination screening, depression screening, etc.) without compromising patient provider interaction time.

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