NHS-FPX 6004 Health Care Law and Policy Need for Policy and Practice Guidelines to Address Benchmark Underperformance

NHS-FPX 6004 Health Care Law and Policy

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Introduction to Policy Proposal

The underperformance observed in Mercy Medical Center (MMC) in the previous assignment is inadequate foot examinations and HBA1c tests. It is also identified that these benchmarks are essential in improving diabetes management and treatment. AHRQ indicators also highlighted the optimal benchmark for these two tests which concluded the importance of foot exam and HBA1c testing in pre-diabetics and diabetic patients. 

This assessment is based on proposing a policy and practice guidelines that will help in improving the quality of care and performance of the organization in terms of the underperformance of the benchmarks. It will highlight the role of leaders to develop a policy that will enable the interprofessional team to work collaboratively for resolving the relevant issues related to the performance. This will eventually bring changes in the healthcare system improving the quality and safety of healthcare.

 Need for Policy and Practice Guidelines to Address Benchmark Underperformance

The need for healthcare policies and practice guidelines in healthcare organizations can be understood as it helps in establishing standards that eventually benefit patients, healthcare organizations, and the overall healthcare system. This also helps in improving poor outcomes related to healthcare issues. Similarly to address the benchmark underperformance, it is essential to develop policies and practice guidelines. 

According to the data evaluated from MMC and national benchmarks as described in previous assessments, foot examinations lie at 40% and 42% respectively in the year 2019 and 2020, which according to the national benchmark should be at 84%. Similarly, for HBA1c levels, the tests performed in 2019 and 2020 are 37.3% and 48.3%, correspondingly which is different from the national benchmark as it stays at 79.5% (AHRQ, n.d.).

NHS FPX 6004 Assessment 2 Policy Proposal

These results showed that patients are less involved in their self-management of diabetic states. Diabetes is a disease that has no specific cure, however, the complications can be reduced using appropriate self-management methods. A study to determine the prevalence of poor diabetes self-management in Ethiopian patients concluded that 1 out of 2 diabetic patients lack the behaviors of self-managing their diseases (Habebo et al., 2020). The results from such studies and the Mercy Medical Center’s databases on the reduced number of foot examinations and HBA1c tests advocate the need for the development and implementation of policies using evidence-based strategies as these results are showing poor outcomes on patients’ health, delayed treatment, reduced patients’ satisfaction, increased healthcare costs, and eventually leading to poor quality of life. 

The purpose of this policy proposal is to establish standard methodologies which will help the organization to regularly perform foot examinations and HBA1c tests of diabetic and non-diabetic patients to lower the burden of the disease and improve outcomes by reducing complications. If the problems are not addressed adequately, it may lead to severe complications for the patients which may hinder their lives, cause a financial burden, reduce their well-being, and may cause mortality (Sayeed et al., 2020). 

Summary of Proposed Policy and Guidelines 

In MMC, it is crucial to implement new policies and standard guidelines to improve foot examinations and HBA1c tests for diabetic patients. Mercy Medical Center should develop a policy for the timelines of foot screening among patients with diabetes and diabetic complications. These timelines should be based on the evidence-based recommendations by the International Working Group on Diabetic Foot (IWGDF), which states that foot screening must be done once a year for patients with no incidences of peripheral neuropathy whereas, for patients with peripheral neuropathy, it is recommended to get foot screened every six months.

Moreover, it is recommended that patients with peripheral artery disease, or foot deformity should get it checked every three to six months and those with a leg amputation or pedal ulceration should visit every one to three months (Song & Chambers, 2022). Similarly for the HBA1c, MMC can follow the guidelines suggested by CDC. These standard guidelines define the frequency of HBA1c tests accordingly: 

1. A baseline HBA1c test is required for adults over 45 years of age, or if they are underage but overweight and have any risk factors related to diabetes. 
2. Repeating the test every 3 years is required for adults over 45 years with risk factors.
3. Repeat the test every 1