The hospice must develop, implement, and maintain an effective, ongoing, hospice-wide data-driven quality assessment and performance improvement program. The hospice's governing body must ensure that the program: Reflects the complexity of its organization and services; involves all hospice services (including those services furnished under contract or arrangement); focuses on indicators related to improved palliative outcomes; and takes actions to demonstrate improvement in hospice performance. The hospice must maintain documentary evidence of its quality assessment and performance improvement program and be able to demonstrate its operation to CMS.

(a) Standard: Program scope. (1) The program must at least be capable of showing measurable improvement in indicators related to improved palliative outcomes and hospice services.

(2) The hospice must measure, analyze, and track quality indicators, including adverse patient events, and other aspects of performance that enable the hospice to assess processes of care, hospice services, and operations.

(b) Standard: Program data. (1) The program must use quality indicator data, including patient care, and other relevant data, in the design of its program.

(2) The hospice must use the data collected to do the following:

(i) Monitor the effectiveness and safety of services and quality of care.

(ii) Identify opportunities and priorities for improvement.

(3) The frequency and detail of the data collection must be approved by the hospice's governing body.

(c) Standard: Program activities. (1) The hospice's performance improvement activities must:

(i) Focus on high risk, high volume, or problem-prone areas.

(ii) Consider incidence, prevalence, and severity of problems in those areas.

(iii) Affect palliative outcomes, patient safety, and quality of care.

(2) Performance improvement activities must track adverse patient events, analyze their causes, and implement preventive actions and mechanisms that include feedback and learning throughout the hospice.

(3) The hospice must take actions aimed at performance improvement and, after implementing those actions, the hospice must measure its success and track performance to ensure that improvements are sustained.

(d) Standard: Performance improvement projects. Beginning February 2, 2009 hospices must develop, implement, and evaluate performance improvement projects.

(1) The number and scope of distinct performance improvement projects conducted annually, based on the needs of the hospice's population and internal organizational needs, must reflect the scope, complexity, and past performance of the hospice's services and operations.

(2) The hospice must document what performance improvement projects are being conducted, the reasons for conducting these projects, and the measurable progress achieved on these projects.

(e) Standard: Executive responsibilities. The hospice's governing body is responsible for ensuring the following:

(1) That an ongoing program for quality improvement and patient safety is defined, implemented, and maintained, and is evaluated annually.

(2) That the hospice-wide quality assessment and performance improvement efforts address priorities for improved quality of care and patient safety, and that all improvement actions are evaluated for effectiveness.

(3) That one or more individual(s) who are responsible for operating the quality assessment and performance improvement program are designated.