Quintiles and the American College of Surgeons (ACS) today announced a six-year strategic services agreement to improve data collection and quality reporting for all ACS clinical registries.
Working together, ACS and Quintiles will build a comprehensive and integrated clinical registry platform that combines data from more than 1,800 hospitals across the United States, international medical contributors and individual surgeons to improve surgical patient care outcomes.
ACS will collaborate with Quintiles to strengthen the College’s ability to improve surgical care delivery and quality by integrating six separate registries onto a common, cloud-based data platform to support quality improvement efforts and individual surgeons as they make decisions in real time at the point of care. In addition, ACS will leverage the insights and experience of Quintiles’ physicians and scientists to optimize the use of registry data, translating evidence into value.
“Advances in science, analytics and specialized medical knowledge offer the healthcare industry the opportunity to greatly reduce the global burden of disease,” said Brian Kelly, M.D., president, Payer & Provider Solutions at Quintiles. “Together, ACS and Quintiles will tap into data and insights gained from our experience working across the healthcare ecosystem to deliver the registry of the future; one that provides evidence in the form of deep clinical and quality measures, is supported by processes that improve data input and increase quality, and sits upon an IT infrastructure that enables advanced analytical capabilities to support high-quality healthcare delivery.”
Today’s healthcare environment demands more of surgeons and the hospitals where they work. There is a growing movement among payers to tie reimbursement decisions to patient outcomes, resulting in fewer payments for complications that are deemed preventable. The combined ACS registries will better support high-quality surgical care delivery and help prevent avoidable complications by allowing hospital staffs and surgeons to gather, compare and analyze data across specialty practice areas, patients and geographies to help clarify the value of potential surgical care pathways.
“This initiative marks an innovative transition for our clinical registries,” said ACS Executive Director David B. Hoyt, M.D., F.A.C.S. “We’re very enthusiastic about developing a single platform that will allow for integrated and standardized clinical registry data entry and reporting. It especially will benefit patients by allowing participating surgeons and their hospitals to have real-time information to help them best direct and improve surgical care.”
The registries that will be migrated to the new registry platform include ACS National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP®), the leading nationally validated, risk-adjusted, outcomes-based program to measure and improve the quality of surgical care in the private sector, as well as:
- ACS NSQIP Pediatric
- National Cancer Data Base (ACS Cancer Programs)
- National Trauma Data Bank (ACS Committee on Trauma)
- Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Accreditation and Quality Improvement Program
- Surgeon Specific Registry
For nearly a century, the American College of Surgeons has implemented leading quality improvement programs. Improving the quality of surgical care leads to greater access for patients, fewer complications and better outcomes, thus lowering the cost of care. The underpinning of ACS quality improvement programs is based on four key principles: set the standards; build the right infrastructure; use the right data; and verify with outside experts.
“Quintiles is well-positioned to integrate evidence and deliver actionable insights based on patient, provider and payer data,” said Richard Thomas, president, Technology & Solutions at Quintiles. “Since 2011, Quintiles has developed more than 160 patient registries and observational studies, leveraging technologies and expertise among key stakeholders – from patients and physicians to payers – to reshape the way healthcare decisions are made and delivered. This effort by ACS and Quintiles is a shining example of how, by working across stakeholders with a focus on integration and outcomes, a healthier world is possible.”
