Program Details
West Virginia Flex State Profile
The Technical Assistance and Services Center (TASC), a program of the National Rural Health Resource Center, provides technical assistance for the Rural Hospital Medicare Flexibility (Flex) Program in the form of information, tools and resources. State Flex Programs benefit from sharing information with one another and the Flex State Profiles are meant to be a method to encourage that sharing.
State Contacts
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State Office Director, West Virginia
Flex Coordinator, West Virginia
Survey Results
In each core area, what are the top Flex activities in your state?
Core Area 1: Support for Quality Improvement
- The West Virginia Flex Program and West Virginia Hospital Association (WVHA) Critical Access Hospital (CAH) Network will collaborate in an effort to encourage the increase in the number of CAHs in West Virginia publicly reporting data to Hospital Compare on relevant process of care quality measures for inpatient and outpatient care, and Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) patient experience of care survey results.
- The West Virginia Flex Program and WVHA CAH Network will collaborate in support of CAHs implementing a multi-hospital quality/patient safety project focused on leadership and organizational culture.
- The West Virginia Flex Program and WVHA CAH Network will collaborate to support CAHs in developing arrangements to share health information technology (HIT) infrastructure and/or information technology (IT) staff with other CAHs, referral hospitals, and/or health care providers; support initiatives to train CAH clinicians and staff in meaningful use of electronic health records (EHRs), related technologies and health information exchange (HIE); and support optional multi-grantee special project, Medicare Beneficiary Quality Improvement Project (MBQIP).
Core Area 2: Support for Operational and Financial Improvement
- The West Virginia Flex Program and West Virginia Flex Program and West Virginia Hospital Association (WVHA) Critical Access Hospital (CAH) Network will collaborate to assist CAHs in identifying potential areas of financial and operational performance improvement (e.g., financial and operational condition assessments; coordination of network and user group meetings for CFOs and managers to discuss operational and financial issues; review of CAH financial indicator reports).
- The West Virginia Flex Program and WVHA CAH Network will collaborate to develop and provide the infrastructure for a multi-hospital collaborative that supports CAHs in planning and implementing evidence-based strategies for improving operational and financial performance. The collaborative is based on general improvement strategies, such as sharing of best practices and benchmarking, or specific improvement strategies such as revenue cycle management and departmental efficiency. Support includes technical assistance, educational programs/seminars, user group meetings, and consultation provided, facilitated or funded by the West Virginia Flex Program.
Core Area 3: Support for Health System Development and Community Engagement
- The West Virginia Flex Program and WVHA CAH Network will collaborate to support CAHs and communities in conducting or collaborating on assessments to identify unmet community health and health service needs. Support CAHs and communities in developing collaborative projects/initiatives to address unmet health and health service needs.
- The Flex Program will collaborate with the WVHA CAH Network and West Virginia Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Trauma Division to support trauma and EMS systems (state, regional, or community) development.
Please describe a success story or innovative program from the Flex program in your state:
The WV Critical Access Hospital (CAH) Network used a portion of Flex funds for on-site Revenue Cycle Management Review. By conducting this review on-site the employees that are actively involved with each department reviewed was able to participate and learn during this process. Providing this service on-site allowed for more accurate reviews, and it was a dynamic, interactive process. A number of opportunities were identified, and action plans developed.
Another important project for the WV CAHs using Flex funds was on-site ICD-10 education and planning. This project provided an assessment for each CAH as to their preparedness for the imminent move to ICD-10. Each CAH was able to pinpoint gaps, and areas were additional education and training is needed. Each CAH developed a plan of action to make sure they and their vendors are prepared for the transition.
State Contact Details
Melissa Wheeler
State Office Director, West Virginia
(304) 558-4382
Specialty Areas / Background
Recruitment and retention, loan repayment, and J-1 Visa waiver
State Office Director since June 2007
Shawn Balleydier
Flex Coordinator, West Virginia
(304) 558-4382
Specialty Areas / Background
Mental health, rural health, Medicare and Medicaid, non-profits, substance abuse, homelessness and shelters
Flex Coordinator since April 2004