Cardiovascular Business - October/November 2007 - (Page 25) oNE ON oNE that are being collected. Two: we will combine this data with Medicare claims data and the National Death Index. If someone is readmitted for an infection, problem with a defibrillator, or other complication of the procedure, it gets entered into these two large databases. Then we’re able to match up the two databases to track longer-term results. Quality, who is interested in registries to see how practice is being performed outside of controlled trials. Q A CVB: Beyond the need for payments and the ability to collect data, what is driving the use of national registries? Dr. Hammill: Hospitals and physicians are worried about the report-carding approach that has been done in the past by insurance companies and state medical organizations or state departments of medicine. The two most visible examples are from New York and Pennsylvania, where in the past they did report-carding of cardiac surgeons with regard to their mortality rate. Because they didn’t have the data on how sick the patients were, some of the bigger hospitals and more experienced surgeons had a higher mortality rate. In the end, it was shown that it was because they were being referred sicker patients. That’s what prompted the Society of Thoracic Surgery (STS) to put together the STS registry in the 1990s, and that same kind of report is being looked at for other areas of medicine. I think the advantage of that kind of registry is that it collects data beyond the claims or administrative data collected by the insurance company. It gives a more accurate picture of the types of patient who are being treated. Q A CVB: How do national registries affect the practice of cardiology? Dr. Hammill: National registries improve the programs locally, so if the program is noting a higher complication rate or longer length of stay, hospitals will try to figure out why and improve it. We think having this type of data out there will help to insure that physicians who do these procedures have adequate training because they will begin to see that this type of information is being tracked. o › AHA Scientific Sessions 2007 Nov. 4-7, Orlando, Fla. ICD pRESENTATIoNS Tuesday, Nov. 6 → 9:15 a.m. → iCd for primary prevention session: patients who receive iCd for madit-ii Criteria in Clinical practice are different from patients enrolled in madit-ii Tuesday, Nov. 6 → 11 a.m. → disparities in Cardiac Care session: racial differences in Nationwide utilization of Cardiac resynchronization therapy Tuesday, Nov. 6 → 11:15 a.m. → disparities in Cardiac Care session: differences in implantation-related Complications Between men and women receiving iCd therapy for primary prevention Tuesday, Nov. 6 → 11:45 a.m. → disparities in Cardiac Care session: sex differences in the Characteristics of patients receiving iCd therapy for primary prevention Wednesday, Nov. 7 → 2:57 p.m. → moderated poster session: racial and ethnic differences in Cardiac resynchronization therapy utilization Outside of published guidelines Q A CVB: Do you expect more registries to be developed? Dr. Hammill: Yes, because it’s a good way of looking at real life experience with devices and therapies. We are looking to develop a complex catheter ablation registry for catheter ablation and ventricular tachycardia. Then I suspect there will be registries developed in other areas of medicine for Medicare and the Agency for Healthcare Research and CardiovascularBusiness.com Cardiovascular Business 25 http://www.CardiovascularBusiness.com
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