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CREATING THE KIDNEY CARE QUALITY ALLIANCE
Background
Members of the kidney care community and health care community-at-large have joined together in a collaborative effort – the Kidney Care Quality Alliance.
The goal of the Alliance is to involve patients and their advocates, care professionals, providers, suppliers and purchasers in the development of performance measures at the facility and physician levels to evaluate and improve the quality of care for patients with chronic kidney disease.
The Alliance will also focus on developing data collection and aggregation strategies and promoting transparency through the reporting of performance measures to consumers, patients, care professionals, dialysis facilities and others in the kidney care community to inform choice and improve outcomes.
KIDNEY CARE QUALITY ALLIANCE (KCQA)
STRUCTURE
KCQA Members
KCQA Steering Committee Members
KCQA Steering Committee Meeting Summaries
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KIDNEY CARE QUALITY INITIATIVE (KCQI)/KIDNEY CARE QUALITY ALLIANCE (KCQA) PROCESS
The Alliance Convener/Administrator
KCP professional staff will serve as the convener and administrative arm of the Alliance and the Alliance Steering Committee.
Responsibilities will include facilitating meetings to ensure the smooth operation of the Alliance. In that capacity, KCP professional staff will provide these services and act as the Alliance Convener/Administrator.
The Alliance and the Alliance Steering Committee will not have a chairperson to ensure a balanced process both in fact and appearance.
By not having a chairperson, we assure that each Alliance member and Steering Committee representative has equal representation.
We also assure a level playing field for each organization and interest with regard to both process and outcome.
If any sub-group created by the Alliance Steering Committee, such as a Task Group or Work Group, is unable to comply with the charge or timeline established for it by the Alliance Steering Committee, the Convener/Administrator must notify the Alliance Steering Committee.
The Alliance Steering Committee must then re-evaluate the composition of the sub-group
(e.g., Task Group or Work Group)
and may establish a new sub-group that will reach closure consistent with the requirements set forth by the Alliance Steering Committee.
Membership
Membership in the Alliance is open to organizations in the health care community, including patient organizations, consumers, providers, health care professionals, and manufacturers.
Interested entities should contact the Alliance administrator. There is no cost associated with joining the Alliance.
The Approval Process
All Alliance members in good standing will have the opportunity to vote on any consensus proposal.
Upon receipt of recommendations, the representatives of Alliance will meet to review the recommendations and to discuss them.
All members of the Alliance will have opportunities to comment on the recommendations in writing.
If there are comments, the Alliance Steering Committee will meet to discuss how to address the comments, which may include creating a special task group to evaluate comments and consult kidney care experts, such as the previous KCP Work Group members, in the creation of a final recommendation.
Once it has reviewed the comments, the Alliance Steering Committee will make recommendations that will be forwarded to each member of the Alliance.
Upon receipt of final recommendations, ballots will be distributed to the member’s designated primary liaison.
Ballots will specify the components of the document or other product for which vote(s) are being sought and will also provide an option to abstain. Ballots shall also identify the specific deadline and manner in which they should be returned to the Alliance Administrator.
Prior to the close of the voting period, the Alliance will contact non-respondents at least once.
The minimum period for voting shall be 5 calendar days.
Only ballots cast in the affirmative or negative shall be tallied to determine the outcome of a vote within the Alliance.
The affirmative or negative action receiving the highest number of votes shall prevail. For purposes of balloting on recommendations, a quorum of fifty percent is not required.
For purposes of adoption recommendations, the following is required for approval:
1- a healthy majority of those voting; and
2- at least a majority of the non-kidney care community organizations.
Suggested modifications to the recommendations that are proposed during the voting process must be sent in writing to the Alliance Administrator.
All comments must be received within 48 hours of distribution of the ballot. The Alliance Administrator will provide the comments to the Alliance members’ designated primary liaisons prior to the close of the voting period; comments received after the designated 48 hours period will be shared as soon as possible, but might not be available until after the voting deadline.
If a member wishes to change his or her vote based on comments received within the voting period, it may direct a written request to the designated Alliance Administrator.
The requested change must be forwarded by the same signatory as the initial ballot and must be filed prior to the voting deadline.
In the event a change of vote is requested within the voting period, the record shall duly note both the original and the change. The changed vote shall be incorporated into the final tally.
Requests to change a vote after the voting deadline shall be limited only to the specific ballot option(s) — i.e., no additional comments shall be considered.
Post-deadline changes will be duly noted in the record of the vote, but will not be used for purposes of reporting the decision to the Alliance.
Notice of all Alliance decisions for consensus products will be made available to the public on the KCQI website and by other vehicles (e.g., press releases and other public announcements), as appropriate, within 30 days of Alliance action.
Appeals
Anyone may register a request for reconsideration of an endorsed voluntary consensus recommendation by notifying the Alliance Administrator in writing within 30 days of public notification that the Alliance has approved the recommendations.
For an appeal to be considered, the notification letter to the Alliance must include information clearly demonstrating that the appellant has interests that are directly and materially affected by the Alliance–endorsed recommendations, and that the Alliance decision has had (or will have) an adverse effect on those interests.
The Alliance Administrator will review appeals. They may consult with the Alliance members, the Alliance Steering Committee, and/or other sources, as appropriate, before presenting a recommendation.
The Alliance Administrator shall notify the Alliance Steering Committee as soon as practicable and act on them in a timely manner.
If the Alliance Steering Committee agrees to consider the appeal, it will follow the same process used to consider comprehensive proposals outlined above.
Distribution of Information
Lists of Alliance members, Ad Hoc Work Groups, and final Alliance documents (including approved recommendations, Guiding Principles, and minutes), as well as other relevant materials will be posted on the KCQI website www.kidneycarepartners.org
as they become available. The distribution of some materials and information (e.g., meeting agendas, background materials, and draft recommendations) may be limited.
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