University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine

Nevada State Flex Program

What is one Core Competency your state Flex Program is working on developing through Flex activities?

Core Competency: Strengthening Quality Reporting and Improvement

The Nevada Flex Program continues to advance quality, financial, and operational improvement efforts across Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs). To support Medicare Beneficiary Quality Improvement Project (MBQIP) reporting and broader quality initiatives, the Flex team convenes two dedicated workgroups: the Quality Improvement/Risk Management Workgroup (QIRMWG) and the Infection Control Workgroup (ICWG). Each group maintains an active listserv to encourage ongoing communication, collaboration, and peer networking.

The Nevada Flex Program convenes the Performance Improvement (PI) Network to support Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) in strengthening financial performance. This workgroup brings together hospital leadership, such as CFOs, business office managers, and other key stakeholders, to address revenue cycle challenges, improve financial stability, and build long-term sustainability strategies. The program also offers targeted education and training in billing and coding to further support these efforts.

What is one activity your state is funding through SHIP?

The Nevada SHIP Program activities included consortium coordination, support for value-based purchasing, quality improvement training, and data collection and reporting aligned with MBQIP and other SHIP priorities.

Value-based purchasing efforts focused primarily on supporting hospital participation in HCAHPS and related patient experience initiatives. The Nevada SHIP Program also advanced efficiency and quality improvement through adverse medical event management systems, MBQIP data analysis, and expert-led quality improvement training. Hospitals were supported in maintaining access to adverse event reporting software through a combination of group purchasing agreements and reimbursement for vendor-selected systems.