Drill down into PSI 7 to improve quality reporting

Why This Topic Matters

PSI 7 can influence hospital quality scores and pay-for-performance outcomes, so documentation and coding completeness matter for reliable reporting. Understanding the measure’s general structure helps organizations identify areas where data capture and EHR workflow may affect performance.

Article Sections

1. Introduction to PSI 7

   Introduces the PSI 7 measure and its role within the PSI 90 composite. Summarizes the overall reporting context and where technical specifications are available.

2. PSI 7 exclusions

   Describes the broad categories of discharges that may be excluded from the measure. Discusses documentation and coding factors related to exclusion review.

3. Coding and documentation vulnerabilities for exclusions

   Reviews common documentation and coding issues that can affect exclusion capture. Focuses on recurring problem areas seen in quality reporting workflows.

4. PSI 7 inclusions

   Explains the general types of events that place a discharge into the measure outcome category. Covers the coding and documentation context for identifying relevant cases.

5. Coding and documentation vulnerabilities for inclusions

   Summarizes common issues that may cause incorrect inclusion of cases in the measure. Addresses documentation clarity and related reporting concerns.

6. PSI 7 risk adjustment

   Describes the role of risk adjustment in PSI 7 performance. Discusses comorbidity-based inputs and their importance for the composite measure.

7. Documentation and coding vulnerabilities for risk adjustment

   Covers broad risk-adjustment documentation and coding weaknesses that may affect hospital performance. Emphasizes completeness, specificity, and review processes.

8. Leveraging the EHR

   Discusses ways electronic health records can support identification, documentation capture, and workflow management. Includes general approaches for structured documentation and problem list support.

9. Identification of patients with blood stream infections

   Describes how EHR tools can help flag patients for review based on clinical data and workflow triggers. Focuses on tracking and screening support.

10. Complete provider documentation for bloodstream infections

    Reviews how structured documentation prompts can support specificity in provider notes. Discusses use of dropdowns and templates for better data capture.

11. Capture of diagnoses that can exclude patients from the measure

    Explains the importance of documenting qualifying diagnoses consistently across encounters. Highlights problem list management as a support strategy.

12. Next month: A look at PSI 12, peri-operative deep vein thrombosis or pulmonary embolus

    Provides a brief preview of the next article in the series. Identifies the next PSI topic to be covered.