20 May 2026
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Key Takeaways from MiCR’s First Telehealth Cardiac Rehab Forum

Key Takeaways from MiCR’s First Telehealth Cardiac Rehab Forum

May 20, 2026 | 0 Comments | , , , , , ,

Since 2019, the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan Cardiovascular Consortium (BMC2) and the Michigan Value Collaborative (MVC) have worked together to improve cardiac rehabilitation utilization in Michigan. This collaboration led to the founding of the Michigan Cardiac Rehabilitation network (MiCR) in 2022, a partnership that endeavors to increase participation in cardiac rehab for all eligible individuals in Michigan through clinical practice sharing, networking, data benchmarking, and the dissemination of resources.

On April 17, MiCR invited practitioners from across Michigan to discuss the evolving role of virtual and hybrid cardiac rehabilitation programming amidst recent legislative wins. In February, Congress advanced the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026 (H.R. 7148), which extends Medicare telehealth and in-home cardiopulmonary rehabilitation flexibilities through December 31, 2027. With this extension, cardiac, intensive cardiac, and pulmonary rehab programs in both hospital outpatient and physician office settings can continue delivering services virtually using two-way audio and video technology through the end of 2027. This two-year window gives programs the opportunity to launch or expand hybrid rehab models, try new approaches to reach patients who have difficulty attending in-person sessions, and plan with greater confidence while longer-term policy solutions are explored.

MiCR kicked off the forum emphasizing its mission and the progress made to date in statewide enrollment, with participation rates for eligible cardiac patients across the collaborative increasing from 24% in 2020 to 35% in 2024. Despite progress being made, the state is still short of the MiCR goal of 40% enrollment within 90 days of discharge from eligible procedures (Figure 1), as well as the Million Hearts goal of 70% enrollment.

Figure 1. Trends in cardiac rehab enrollment within 90 days of discharge from AMI, CABG, PCI, SAVR, or TAVR encounter

Line graph showing yearly trends in cardiac rehab participation within 90 days of discharge from various cardiac procedures between 2020 and 2024. The graph compares actual MVC participation rates, increasing from 24% in 2020 to 35% in 2024, against a constant MiCR goal of 40%, highlighting a gradual upward trend.

MiCR conducted a short survey in 2025 about telehealth programming in cardiac rehab to better understand opportunities to close the enrollment gap using telehealth, and how leaders and care teams feel about offering telehealth options. Of the 27 cardiac rehab sites that responded, only two were currently offering some form of virtual cardiac rehab, while some others expressed interest in launching or further investigating virtual service options.

Defining Cardiac Rehab Delivery Models

Prior to initiating a discussion, MiCR reviewed several key definitions to clarify terminology surrounding evolving cardiac rehab delivery models:

  • Traditional in-center delivery: synchronous, in-person care
  • Virtual delivery: synchronous, real-time, audio-visual communication
  • Remote delivery: asynchronous communication between patients and providers
  • Hybrid delivery: use of more than one of the methods noted above.

The forum focused primarily on virtual and hybrid delivery approaches given insurance reimbursement stipulations. MiCR emphasized how hybrid models may offer optimal opportunities for organizations to balance flexibility, patient engagement, and clinical oversight.

Health Systems Share Real-World Virtual Cardiac Rehab Experiences

The forum next featured presentations from two Michigan hospitals currently offering virtual or hybrid cardiac rehab programming.

Henry Ford Health

Steven Keteyian, PhD, Bioscientific Clinical Staff in the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, and Kat Steenson, MS, Clinical Exercise Physiologist, shared insights into Henry Ford Health’s hybrid cardiac rehab model, including their group virtual session structure.

Dr. Keteyian spoke to the importance of designing a virtual program as similar to current in-center facility programming as possible – including using the same forms, outcome measures, even times that the classes are offered. He noted that this simple mindset may help to streamline implementation and workflows. Additionally, Dr. Keteyian encouraged programs considering virtual care to engage physician champions and optimize internal billing support when getting started.

Steenson discussed her experience delivering both traditional in-center and virtual cardiac rehab care and highlighted the important opportunity virtual delivery offers to extend services to patients facing transportation, scheduling, or geographic barriers. She also encouraged sites to develop virtual programming in line with current in-person practices, noting that this makes it easier on the staff ultimately delivering the services.

Michigan Medicine

Next, Samantha Fink, Administrative Manager of Domino’s Farms Cardiology, and Diane Perry, MS, ACSM-CCEP, CHWC, Certified Clinical Exercise Physiologist, outlined Michigan Medicine’s participation in a research pilot for virtual cardiac rehab delivery over the last two years.

Fink highlighted the importance of combining operational planning, process improvement, and patient accessibility initiatives when initially building virtual programs. She noted that while their patients expressed significant interest in virtual options, not all were set up for success—lacking reliable technology, exercise equipment, or appropriate health screenings prior to starting virtual cardiac rehab. Fink also encouraged sites to establish clear emergency protocols and steps for assessing the appropriateness of virtual care.

Perry then shared her perspective as an exercise physiologist on adapting patient support, exercise guidance, and engagement strategies for the virtual environment. She also endorsed a hybrid program, and she spoke in more detail about the importance of in-person initial assessments to confirm the appropriateness of virtual cardiac rehab.

Telehealth as a Tool to Improve Access

After introducing example programs, MiCR Co-Directors Jessica Golbus, MD, MS, and Michael Thompson, PhD, MPH, facilitated a panel discussion on future implementation opportunities, reimbursement considerations, and collaborative learning across Michigan programs.

Throughout the discussion, the panelists repeatedly emphasized that virtual cardiac rehab is not intended to replace traditional in-center rehab but rather enhance access and reduce long-standing barriers to participation. The panelists pointed out that virtual and hybrid approaches may help programs better serve patients with access barriers, such as rural patients, individuals with transportation limitations, working adults, caregivers, and patients with scheduling challenges. Discussion also reinforced that flexibility in care delivery models may improve patient adherence and completion rates. Lastly, the panelists underscored that successful digital transformation in healthcare is less about chasing trends and more about building practical, individualized programs that improve visibility, efficiency, and accessibility.

The webinar concluded with a call for continued innovation and collaboration as health systems explore new ways to improve cardiac rehab participation. With the extension of federal telehealth flexibilities through the end of 2027, presenters encouraged hospitals to consider this time as an opportunity to pilot, expand, and evaluate virtual cardiac rehab programs. For those interested in learning more about virtual cardiac rehab, the following resources may assist your organization’s journey:

Additionally, you can reference the recording of this forum via YouTube.

MiCR will host a second virtual forum discussion on Tues., June 9, from 12-1 p.m. featuring a demonstration of Henry Ford Health’s group virtual cardiac rehab programming. Registration is available now.

13 May 2026
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MVC 2026 Spring Collaborative-Wide Meeting Summary – From Innovation to Impact: Advancing Care Across Health Networks

MVC 2026 Spring Collaborative-Wide Meeting Summary – From Innovation to Impact: Advancing Care Across Health Networks

May 13, 2026 | 0 Comments | , , ,

The Michigan Value Collaborative (MVC) held its spring 2026 collaborative-wide meeting on Fri., May 8, in Traverse City, Michigan. A total of 84 attendees representing 48 hospitals, 16 multi-hospital systems, and seven physician organizations from throughout the state of Michigan explored strategies for elevating quality across integrated health networks through the lens of system-wide alignment and data-driven improvement.

MVC Director Mark Bradshaw, MSc, began Friday’s meeting with updates on the MVC Coordinating Center and the MVC Component of the BCBSM P4P Program [see slides]. He first introduced attendees to MVC’s newest team members, Senior Faculty Advisor Ryan Howard, MD, MS, and Lead Analyst Megan Heath, PhD. Bradshaw then provided an update on recent MVC reporting since the fall collaborative-wide meeting, including 12 hospital-level custom reports, a push report focused on follow-up utilization, and the P4P Program Year (PY) 2025 final scorecards. It was further announced that MVC’s registry was recently updated with new payer data, including three new months of BCBSM/BCN claims and three new quarters of Medicare FFS claims.

He also provided an update on MVC’s new site coordinator education program. With a total of 31 site coordinators enrolled thus far in 2026, he encouraged those interested in starting in Q4 of 2026 or Q1 of 2027 to join the waitlist for this individualized educational offering [registration link].

Bradshaw next summarized updates on the Michigan Cardiac Rehab network’s (MiCR) efforts to improve cardiac rehabilitation utilization. These include an upcoming MiCR virtual forum featuring a group cardiac rehab demo [registration link], a third round of NewBeat material orders, and Heart-to-Heart patient stories. Additionally, he summarized the status of MiCR’s medication management initiative. If interested in participating in an interview on this topic, please contact MVC via email [email link].

After providing MVC Coordinating Center updates, Bradshaw moved on to provide insights into final scoring of P4P PY 2025 (see Figures 1-3), which included slight increases in average total points scored from PY 2024, some improvements in engagement point scoring, and continued scoring success for value metrics tied to MVC’s value-based initiatives (e.g., cardiac rehab and preoperative testing metrics).

Figure 1. Distribution of MVC’s P4P PY 2025 Total Points

Line chart displays final scores of MVC hospitals participating in PY 24-25 program, with scores plotted as blue dots ranging from 2 to 10. Horizontal lines indicate mean score of 6.7 in orange and median score of 6.0 in gray, highlighting most hospitals scoring above median with several reaching 10 out of 10.

Figure 2. MVC’s P4P PY 2025 Scoring Breakdown by Episode Spending and Value Metric Selections

Horizontal bar chart comparing PY 25 episode spending scores and value metric scores across medical conditions and procedures. Spending scores range from 1.5 for Pneumonia to 2.9 for CABG, while value metric scores range from 2.0 for 7-day follow-up after Pneumonia to 3.7 for Preoperative Testing, with mean and median values indicated for each group.

Figure 3. MVC’s P4P PY 2025 Engagement Point Distribution

Scatter plot showing engagement scores of MVC hospitals participating in PY 24-25 program, with individual hospital scores represented by blue dots and a mean score of 1.8 marked by an orange horizontal line. Most hospitals achieve or exceed the mean score, with several reaching the maximum score of 2.0, indicating high engagement levels across participants.

After reviewing hospital performance in 2025, Bradshaw looked to the PY 2026-2027 cycle, announcing a one-time alternative point opportunity for PY 2026 to earn credit for MVC’s new health outcome variation (HOV) metric. Additional details on submission requirements and timelines will be announced to site coordinators in the coming weeks. Following this, he noted the many opportunities to earn engagement points remaining in calendar year 2026 including virtual workgroups, networking dinners, and MVC’s fall collaborative-wide meeting in Livonia. For a complete schedule of events and registration, please visit MVC’s events webpage. Bradshaw reminded members that PY 2026 mid-year scorecards are expected in Q3 2026, and hospitals will be asked to make metric selections for PYs 2028-2029 in Q4 2026.

The meeting then featured an MVC data presentation by MVC Medical Director Hari Nathan, MD, PhD, and MVC Analyst Janet Zhang, MPH, on reporting and benchmarking outcomes across Michigan health systems. Dr. Nathan began with a discussion on the gradual, structural shift over the last two decades from independent ownership towards health system affiliation, noting that Michigan has outpaced national averages for system affiliation. He then reviewed the current state of MVC’s system-level reporting and outlined other measures of system variation from the literature not currently utilized in MVC reporting (Figure 4), emphasizing the need for MVC and its membership to co-design a path for measuring system-level quality in the future.

Zhang supplemented the presentation by sharing unblinded data on variation in hospital-level risk-adjusted 30-day readmission rates within hospital systems. She outlined traditional methods of showcasing variation using caterpillar plots and demonstrated how MVC might leverage hospital-level data to calculate a single index value for systems to support tracking variation over time. Zhang and Dr. Nathan both emphasized the importance of considering quality in outcomes and variation in outcomes as they evaluate their system-level performance.

Figure 4. Sample Approaches to Measuring System Variation

Table presenting system characteristics, relevant metrics, and rationales for surgical care quality assessment. It includes metrics like Herfindahl–Hirschman Index for centralization, case volume percentages for surgery avoidance and selective referral, and ambulatory surgery distribution, highlighting standards, care optimization, and resource allocation.

Building on the data presentation, a panel discussion led by Dr. Nathan further explored what “systemness” and system quality of care mean in practice and how stronger integration can improve quality, outcomes, and access across health systems and networks. Panelists included Alex Callaway, MBA, CPHQ, CPPS, Regional Quality Director of Munson Health System; Emily Nerreter, MBA, CPC, CRC, Pay for Performance & Registries Manager of Henry Ford Health System; and Stephanie Pins-Schallip, MSA, CPHQ, Director of Value Analysis & Enhancement of MyMichigan Health. Each panelist brought unique perspectives and experience to the discussion, presenting compelling evidence to support the optimization of system-level resources, data, and cooperation.

Attendees then spent the remainder of the morning in breakout sessions [see breakout session slides] learning from peers, sharing intervention success stories, and brainstorming approaches to measuring quality in both small, stand-alone hospitals and large multi-hospital systems:

  • Catalyst Community for Improvement: Transforming Performance Together (Corewell)
  • Roadmap to Building Strong Post-Acute Care Network (Trinity Health Alliance)
  • Developing a Heart Failure Care Management Program (Trinity Health IHA)
  • Rural & Critical Access Hospital Claims Data Reporting Strategies (MVC)
  • Advancing System-Level Quality Improvement: Exploring Concepts for New MVC Metrics (MVC)

Following a networking lunch and a second session of breakouts, attendees came back together for the presentation of MVC awards by Engagement Manager Jessica Souva, MSN, RN, C-ONQS. The 2025 Engagement Award recipients included:

  • Henry Ford Health – 2025 Most Engaged System
  • Primary Care Partners, Inc. - 2025 Most Engaged Physician Organization
  • Scheurer Health – 2025 Most Engaged Critical Access Hospital
  • University of Michigan Health-West – 2025 Most Engaged General Acute Care Hospital

Souva also announced the winner of the poster contest, which was identified through member voting during the afternoon poster session. University of Michigan Health – Sparrow Carson won “best poster” for their “Rural Sepsis Initiative: Timely Care, Better Outcomes” poster submission. The poster was presented by Sara Hagerman, BSN.

The meeting closed with a reflection of the day’s themes and sessions, and reminders about upcoming meetings and events.

What are attendees saying about the meeting?

“The interactive sessions were great, and so was the location.”

“Today was a really great day, filled with a lot of discussion, networking and interactive activities.”

“This was my first meeting. I appreciate the information shared and opportunity.”

“I liked the panel discussion today. In the past, I also like the different tables of presenters to allow for smaller group discussion. Overall, lots of good discussion on how to work in a system.”

“Always love coming to MVC collaborative wide meetings as they’re so informative and a great way to network with others who have the same or very similar goals and outcomes!”

“The information presented was highly applicable across systems and independents.”

If you have questions about any of the topics discussed at MVC’s spring collaborative-wide meeting or are interested in following up for more details, please email the MVC Coordinating Center. MVC’s next collaborative-wide meeting will be held in person on Fri., Oct. 9, 2026, in Livonia, Michigan.

22 Apr 2026
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April Workgroup Features Preoperative Testing Multipayer Report Registry Demonstration

April Workgroup Features Preoperative Testing Multipayer Report Registry Demonstration

April 22, 2026 | 0 Comments | , , , ,

In April, the Michigan Value Collaborative (MVC) hosted a virtual preoperative testing workgroup featuring a presentation by the MVC Coordinating Center focused on utilizing MVC’s multi-payer preoperative testing registry reports. The MVC Coordinating Center hosts workgroup presentations once or twice per month, covering a variety of topics including post-discharge follow-up, sepsis, cardiac rehabilitation, rural health, preoperative testing, and health in action.

Preoperative Testing Workgroup – MVC Coordinating Center

The MVC registry includes many different reports for members to utilize when investigating various conditions, procedures, and outcomes. One of the more recent additions includes the preoperative testing reports which include claims data from multiple payers in one location. Reports that were highlighted in the preoperative testing workgroup included the preoperative testing table report, preoperative testing trends report, and preoperative testing utilization rankings report.

Each report offers members multiple filters to modify the data shown including episode start dates, payer selection, specific conditions (or the option to choose all), several common preoperative tests, such as blood tests, cardiac tests, chest x-ray, electrocardiography (EKG), pulmonary function tests, and urinalysis, and patient demographics (age, gender, race/ethnicity, comorbidities).

MVC Site Engagement Coordinator and workgroup presenter Emily Bair, MS, MPH, RDN, introduced the workgroup by sharing a preoperative testing utilization trend graph that included data on all MVC members and all available payers. The graph demonstrated that since the implementation of the preoperative testing value-based initiative in 2020, MVC members have seen a 6% decrease in unnecessary preoperative testing utilization for specific low-risk procedures. Based on available claims data, preop testing rates across the collaborative have declined from approximately 44% to 38% since 2022.

MVC’s preoperative testing measure definition includes the following:

  1. Numerator: episodes of care where preoperative testing (e.g., urinalysis, pulmonary function, chest x-ray, electrocardiography, certain blood tests, and certain cardiac tests) occurred in the 30 days prior to MVC-defined low-risk laparoscopic cholecystectomy, inguinal hernia repair, and lumpectomy procedures.
  2. Denominator: Elective and outpatient MVC-defined cholecystectomy, inguinal hernia repair and lumpectomy episodes with length of stay between 0 – 2 days.

The preoperative testing initiative, known as the RITE-Size initiative, has been an ongoing collaborative effort between MVC, the Michigan Surgical Quality Collaborative (MSQC), Anesthesiology Performance Improvement and Reporting Exchange (ASPIRE), and the Michigan Program on Value Enhancement (MPrOVE). MVC and MSQC data registries were updated with preoperative testing metrics to improve visibility for members, give access to diverse data, and offer unique customization tools for preoperative testing reports. The MVC engagement team has an ongoing effort to engage and educate members on all of the resources available to them through our registry and data reports. To learn more about attendee usage of MVC data, Bair polled participants to assess whether they had accessed the preoperative testing reports, and if so, whether they used the data in any quality improvement (QI) efforts at their site or system (Figures 1 and 2).

Figure 1. Poll: Have You Accessed MVC’s Multi-payer Reports?

Bar chart showing participant responses to accessing MVC's multi-payer reports, with three horizontal bars labeled "Yes," "No," and "Don't have access." The chart indicates 45% answered "No," 35% "Yes," and 15% "Don't have access," highlighting a majority have not accessed the reports.

Figure 2. Poll: Have You Used MVC’s Multi-payer Reports to Support QI?

Horizontal bar chart showing responses to using MVC's multi-payer reports for supporting QI, with three categories: "No" at about 38%, "Don't have access" at about 32%, and "Yes" at about 23%. Chart uses orange bars with percentage labels on the x-axis ranging from 0% to 45%, highlighting majority respondents either do not use or lack access to the reports.

The polling discussion revealed that while many attendees had registry access, 44% had not utilized these multi-payer reports for quality improvement work. Those that did utilize the reports (23%) shared that they use them for efforts such as system-level benchmarking across their hospitals.

Following the polling results, Bair shared unblinded data from Bronson Health System’s MVC multi-payer registry reports and MVC common conditions push report, covering how differing case counts can impact preoperative testing rate performance, especially when looking at conditions separately. Case volume is a common concern for smaller hospitals, such as critical access sites, when trying to extrapolate useful claims data. As larger health systems are acquiring smaller hospitals like critical access sites, though, they may need to shift how the data can and should be interpreted. Using yearly trending can increase the denominator for case data and give a more accurate visual representation of utilization or performance over time, whereas looking at data on a monthly or quarterly timeframe can show volatility due to case counts having high variability over short time ranges.

MVC welcomes workgroup presenters from across Michigan to share their expertise, success stories, initiatives, and solution-focused ideas with MVC members. Please reach out to us by email if you are interested in being a workgroup presenter or submit an online presentation proposal.

18 Mar 2026
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Reducing Unnecessary Preoperative Testing: Progress on RITE-Size Partnership

Reducing Unnecessary Preoperative Testing: Progress on RITE-Size Partnership

March 18, 2026 | 0 Comments | , ,

For many patients preparing for surgery, the process begins long before they enter the operating room. Blood tests, lab visits, and diagnostic screenings often become routine steps in preoperative care—even for patients undergoing low-risk procedures. In many cases, these tests add extra appointments and costs without changing how care is delivered.

Research suggests that as many as one in three patients evaluated for low-risk surgery receive tests that are not clinically necessary, and those results rarely influence clinical decisions. Improving the appropriateness of testing is therefore an important opportunity to improve the patient experience while reducing inefficiencies in surgical care.

For the last few years, the Michigan Value Collaborative has engaged its suite of offerings – from dedicated registry pages and push reports to workgroups and performance-based incentives – to support hospitals across the state in aligning their preoperative protocols with evidence-based guidelines.

Progress on the RITE-Size Trial

Another key component in the success of improved preoperative testing appropriateness in Michigan is the Right-Sizing Testing Before Elective Surgery (RITE-Size) trial, supported by the Michigan Program on Value Enhancement (MPrOVE), the Michigan Surgical Quality Collaborative (MSQC), the Anesthesiology Performance Improvement and Reporting Exchange (ASPIRE), and MVC.

RITE-Size is an Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)-funded, multi-institutional quality improvement trial. RITE-Size launched a pilot in March 2024 at three hospitals in Michigan. The study aimed to meet criteria in several areas such as feasibility (implementation in the appropriate amount of time), testing rates (reduction), and acceptability and appropriateness (results from interviews). By August 2024, the desired milestones had been achieved, showing a 68% average reduction in unnecessary testing by the three participating sites (Figure 1). All three sites saw significant decreases in their testing rates following implementation of the multi-component intervention.

Figure 1. MVC RITE-Size Pilot Program Testing Rates Over Time Across All Three Sites from March-April 2024 to July-August 2024

line graph depicting reduction in unnecessary preoperative testing at three pilot sites

This was followed by a larger trial in 2025 with six new hospitals. Each site participated in a site visit, personalized coaching, and evaluation of their data in consultation with the RITE-Size team to guide on-site efforts to improve the appropriateness of their preoperative testing. In 2026, the RITE-Size partners are looking to enroll 12-15 hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) across Michigan.

Along the way, some of the successes, tools, and challenges from sites participating in the trial have been featured in MVC’s preoperative testing workgroups, where clinical and quality leaders have come together to learn from one another and share best practices. In one of those recent workgroups, for example, Lake Huron Medical Center shared insights into their experience in the trial and its impact on their preoperative protocols. A collated list of MVC’s preoperative testing workgroups can be found on MVC’s YouTube channel.

The work is also contributing to the broader evidence base on reducing low-value care. Nicole Mott, MD, MSCR, a National Clinician Scholar at the University of Michigan supported by the Veterans Administration and a general surgery resident at the University of Colorado, was the lead author on a recently published paper in JAMA Network Open that described the components and impact of the trial.

Leveraging Partner Operations for Recruitment

Over the past year, the RITE-Size partnership has worked to strengthen alignment between the trial’s activities with those operational activities of the partner organizations.

For instance, participation in the RITE-Size initiative is now tied to MSQC’s BCBSM P4P scorecard for preoperative testing, allowing hospitals to receive credit toward their scorecard by engaging in the initiative. MVC is also leveraging its new ambulatory surgery center (ASC) dataset to identify additional sites beyond the hospital setting that may benefit from participating in the initiative, with recruitment efforts under way with six eligible ASCs. Three new hospitals joined the trial at the start of 2026, and additional sites are engaged in conversations and related information sessions as they consider participating.

Supporting Hospitals in Practice Change

Participating hospitals are approaching preoperative testing improvement from a variety of starting points. For some, the initiative has helped validate practices that were already evolving. For others, it has created an opportunity to revisit long-standing protocols and bring them in line with current evidence.

At Lake Huron Medical Center, participation in the RITE-Size initiative helped uncover an important opportunity for improvement. While staff had already begun reducing unnecessary preoperative testing in practice, the hospital discovered that its formal documentation had not kept pace with these changes. The pre-anesthesia testing protocol used by staff still included outdated materials and handwritten updates accumulated over time.

Through the collaborative work of the RITE-Size initiative, the hospital was able to review and modernize its protocol, ensuring that documentation reflects current practice and provides clear guidance for clinical teams. This type of operational refinement—aligning written protocols, data reporting, and frontline practice—is a common step for organizations working to improve the appropriateness of preoperative testing.

Kelly Lewton, RN, BSN quote

The collaborative structure of the initiative has also proven valuable. Participating hospitals are able to share implementation strategies, learn from peers facing similar challenges, and access guidance from project partners as they refine their approaches.

Looking Ahead

As this work continues, MVC is also using its claims-based data to examine the broader impact of reducing unnecessary testing. The MVC Coordinating Center is currently partnering with MSQC to explore the impact and value of MSQC’s preoperative testing metric since its inclusion in their scorecard. The aims of this analysis are to better understand the statewide improvement in the measure as well as the potential financial and operational benefits associated with improvements.

Insights from this analysis will help the RITE-Size partners better understand the impact of an incentive-based measure on testing outcomes as well as related cost savings that may accompany on-the-ground improvements.

As the RITE-Size trial continues into its next phase, the trial partners remain committed to supporting hospitals through shared data, collaborative learning, and practical implementation resources. Together, these efforts aim to ensure that preoperative testing is used when it adds clinical value.

Hospitals interested in learning more about their preoperative testing rates and opportunities can contact the MVC team.

11 Mar 2026
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MVC Virtual Networking Event: Relational Coordination in Healthcare Quality Improvement

MVC Virtual Networking Event: Relational Coordination in Healthcare Quality Improvement

March 11, 2026 | 0 Comments | , ,

In February, MVC hosted its first virtual networking event of 2026 with a special presentation on relational coordination by MVC Project Manager Emily Woltmann, PhD, MSW, and Richard Wylde, MSc, Deputy Director of Improvement at Leeds and York Partnership, National Health Service (NHS) Foundation Trust. With more than 45 attendees, the event introduced members to relational coordination, a framework that can be used to evaluate and strengthen collaboration and teamwork in healthcare settings. Following presentations, participants joined breakout groups to discuss the content and complete a case study activity, followed by a debrief and wrap up discussion. 

Overview of Relational Coordination  

Woltmann kicked off the event with an introduction to relational coordination, which was first introduced by Jody Hoffer Gittell as a mutually reinforcing process of communicating and relating for the purpose of task integration. She introduced participants to the relational coordination framework developed by Braneis University’s Relational Coordination Collaborative (RCC), which showcases how relationships and communication continuously reinforce each other in positive and negative ways. In relational coordination, the main components being considered are whether communication that occurs is happening in a frequent, timely, and accurate manner and is being used with the intention of problem-solving; while relational components reference shared goals and knowledge rooted in mutual respect. 

Relational coordination is a dynamic theory, where many areas influence each other. In addition to communication and relational components, the full framework (Figure 1) describes the types of structural, relational, and work process interventions that may impact communication and relationships to impact downstream outcomes. 

Figure 1. RCC’s Dynamic Theory of Coordination

flow chart

Structural interventions are implemented by leadership roles and include things like shared meetings, huddles, information systems, and boundary spanner roles that cross over multiple departments. Relational interventions focus on directly improving ways people relate to each other, such as cultivating safe spaces for discussion. Finally, work process interventions focus on workflows and sometimes use plan, do, study, act (PDSA) cycles for improvement.

Woltmann highlighted some of the methods available for measuring relational coordination, including a validated quantitative survey to measure role-based coordination between team members. The survey can help evaluate how well relational coordination is working between different roles. Another measurement tool that can be used is relational coordination mapping (Figure 2), which is a visual way to view responses from the relational coordination survey and summarize the strength of relationships between groups. It is designed to encourage deeper engagement and reflection among participants.

Figure 2. Measuring Relational Coordination: Relational Coordination Mapping

Relational Coordination Mapping using a line matrix

Woltmann explained that when relational coordination is working well and is strong, it supports organizations in achieving a wide range of desired performance outcomes such as quality, safety, efficiency, staff well-being, learning, and innovation.

The Maryland and Michigan DECIPHeR Project - Relational Coordination in Community Mental Health Settings

Woltmann also discussed lessons and insights she gleaned about relational coordination from the Maryland and Michigan DECIPHeR Project, which focuses on implementing interventions that decrease cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors in people with serious mental illness. Led by Dr. Amy Kilbourne, PhD, MPH, in the Department of Learning Health Sciences at the University of Michigan, and Dr. Gail Daumit, MD, MHS, at Johns Hopkins University, the project focuses on identifying effective interventions shown to address CVD risk factors in persons with a serious mental illness. This broader implementation trial is researching ways to implement a new intervention called IDEAL GOALS in behavioral health homes (BHHs).

While analyzing the qualitative data for this needs assessment phase of the project, Woltmann and colleagues became interested in using relational coordination to understand relational aspects of care coordination in the BHH context. The sample for this study included 14 sites across Michigan and Maryland, with 14 nurses and 32 frontline staff. Sites were given a qualitative designation of “consistently positive” relational coordination, “consistently negative” relational coordination, or “mixed” relational coordination.

Of the 14 sites, Woltmann said five had a consistently positive relational coordination level, six had a consistently negative level, and three had a mixed result. The research team found that sites with consistently positive relational coordination had a variety of structural factors in place to support RC. Boundary spanner roles were seen as particularly important in achieving good relational coordination, as they take on the role that crosses the gap in care for patients – in this instance community mental health staff to primary care providers. Results from the study indicated there were many kinds of strategies that sites used to develop functional RC, and that the most imperative component to building positive relationships was having a strong sense of trust.

Relational Coordination in Mental Health Services – The National Health System

Following Woltmann’s presentation, Richard Wylde, Deputy Director of LYPFT, provided participants with an in-depth look at how relational coordination is being utilized in his work at the National Health System (NHS) of England and emphasized how important coordination is in a large healthcare system. The NHS employs 1.5 million staff to care for roughly 1.7 million patients daily. With a tax funded healthcare model, each patient’s care is financially covered (£188 Billion per year) (Figure 3).

Figure 3. The English NHS in Numbers and Why Improvement Matters

Illustration of why improvement matters in healthcare

The NHS has a complex system of hospitals, primary care clinics, mental health clinics, and community services. Wylde is a part of the Leeds and York Partnership NHS Foundation Trust (LYPFT) which provides specialist mental health and learning disability services to the people in Leeds West Yorkshire, England. They have 48 locations, including 408 beds, see over 25,000 new patients, and have contact with over 270,000 people in the community per year.

Wylde shared that the NHS relationship coordination journey began with senior leadership who had previous experience with relational coordination, introducing the concept and promoting it to other leaders and the board. He recounted that there was slow organizational uptake of relational coordination theory within the system initially. However, as other leadership saw the benefits, they were able to implement strategies at other organizational levels.

Within the community mental health services system, the LYPFT program wanted to look at how young people transition to adult mental health services. They found that it was important to provide a safe space for players in the system to come together to better coordinate this process, and to be mindful of the many different perspectives and power imbalances present. One of the barriers they experienced, Wylde said, was the difficulty in balancing the need for human relationships and trust building timelines versus the systems' need for quick answers.

Wyle highlighted several key lessons learned through implementing relational coordination at multiple levels of a system, including:

  1. Governance at the board level can have limitations on time for developing a relational space
  2. Relational coordination worked best when senior leaders had a collectively shared understanding of what relational coordination was and how they could use it
  3. Relational coordination was more successful when it had clear framing and context to the program/service/team
  4. It was important for all levels to understand how the relational coordination dynamic functions at the smallest level of a system (between people)
  5. Relational coordination is both a relationship and a process
  6. Strong relationships enable strong processes and vice versa

Breakout Session Debrief

During the breakout session portion of the networking event, participants were guided through a patient case study that demonstrated how breakdowns in staff communication and relationships could negatively impact patient outcomes. The breakout groups had engaging conversations that focused on building trust, relational coordination interventions, explaining the “why” to help teams develop shared goals, understanding the impact of staff-to-patient ratios on communication, and other tools and frameworks that have helped teams improve their communication.

MVC was glad to highlight this topic and the expertise of these presenters to support shared learning and continuous improvement within healthcare teams. MVC welcomes presenters to share their expertise, success stories, initiatives, and solution-focused ideas with MVC members, which cultivates a community of peers looking to collaborate in a non-competitive space. Please reach out to MVC by email if you are interested in being a presenter or submit a presentation proposal online.

25 Feb 2026
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Cardiac Rehabilitation Awareness Week Spotlighted Resources and Tools Improving Cardiac Rehab Enrollment

Cardiac Rehabilitation Awareness Week Spotlighted Resources and Tools Improving Cardiac Rehab Enrollment

February 25, 2026 | 0 Comments | , , , , ,

MVC and BMC2 took to LinkedIn recently to celebrate Cardiac Rehab Awareness Week, spotlighting the importance of cardiac rehabilitation for patients recovering from cardiovascular events. MVC and BMC2 collaborate to lead the Michigan Cardiac Rehab network (MiCR) and its related offerings. Across multiple posts, both teams highlighted stories, tools, collaborations, and insights designed to support providers, patients, and programs working to improve cardiac rehab outcomes in Michigan.

One of the central themes of the week was the voice of the patient. MiCR shared the first completed patient story from a new storytelling initiative called Heart-to-Heart, developed with the Healthy Behavior Optimization for Michigan (HBOM) team. This initiative amplifies real patient experiences, bringing to light why cardiac rehab matters — not just clinically, but personally — for those considering participation. Cardiac rehab week marked the launch of the first available patient story about a patient named Margaret from Covenant Healthcare.

Cardiac Rehab Week also offered opportunities for networking and knowledge exchange. MVC hosted a virtual cardiac rehab workgroup [view video] focused on optimizing congestive heart failure (CHF) follow-up and increasing rehab enrollment in this especially vulnerable patient population. Featuring panelists from Corewell Health, Holland Hospital, Michigan Medicine, MyMichigan Health, and University of Michigan Health-Sparrow, this session highlighted real-world strategies and insights for improving care transitions and referral practices.

Throughout the week, both organizations also shared posts featuring practical tools to strengthen cardiac rehab engagement, such as:

  • NewBeat Resources: BMC2 highlighted NewBeat materials — engaging, evidence-based education and referral tools designed to help care teams talk with patients about the benefits of cardiac rehab and support meaningful discussions that lead to enrollment (Figure 1). A new round of no-cost printing for MiCR sites was announced, offering flexible, ready-to-use materials that programs can request.
  • Cardiac Rehab Center Finder: Knowing “where to go” is a crucial earliest step. MVC and BMC2 reinforced the MichiganCR.org searchable directory that allows patients and providers to locate nearby rehab programs. This simple tool reduces a key barrier to engagement by connecting patients with access points across Michigan.
  • Resource Library Spotlight: The MiCR Resource Library was featured as a one-stop hub for tools — from evidence-based products to collaborative resources developed with partners throughout the state — supporting both providers and patients as they plan, refer, and participate in cardiac rehab sessions.

Figure 1. Cardiac Rehab Resource Materials

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Recognizing the evolving landscape of cardiac rehabilitation delivery, MiCR also took the opportunity to highlight its newest strategic efforts throughout cardiac rehab week, including its explorations into the role of telehealth in cardiac rehab as well as medication management opportunities. Updates on these efforts and more were summarized and linked in a summary blog to the MiCR website. To learn more, read the MiCR summary.

As the week wrapped, the MiCR teams thanked everyone for their role in advancing cardiac rehab throughout Michigan, and invited their active participation going forward—either by trying a MiCR tool in their daily work or sharing their experiences and stories. As MiCR continues its work, the momentum from this week sets the stage for meaningful improvement in patient outcomes and program engagement statewide.

04 Feb 2026
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January Workgroups Highlight Using Claims Data to Drive Sepsis QI and Reducing SSIs Through Multidisciplinary Collaboration

January Workgroups Highlight Using Claims Data to Drive Sepsis QI and Reducing SSIs Through Multidisciplinary Collaboration

February 4, 2026 | 0 Comments | , , , ,

In January, Michigan Value Collaborative (MVC) kicked off the 2026 workgroup calendar with a sepsis workgroup focused on helping members better understand how to use claims-based data to support sepsis quality improvement (QI) efforts. The session featured an overview of sepsis-related reporting available on the MVC registry followed by an example of how custom analytic reports can be used to dig deeper into areas of clinical interest. The second workgroup of the month, a health in action presentation, featured Corewell Health Farmington Hills Hospital’s multi-year QI initiative aimed at reducing surgical site infections (SSIs) in colorectal surgery. The MVC Coordinating Center hosts one to two workgroup presentations per month covering a variety of topics including post-discharge follow-up, sepsis, cardiac rehabilitation, rural health, preoperative testing, and health in action.

Sepsis Workgroup – MVC Coordinating Center

The workgroup opened with a presentation by MVC’s Site Engagement Coordinator Rachel Folk, MHA, who walked participants through the types of sepsis related data available in the MVC registry and how members can use these reports to support local QI initiatives. The presentation emphasized that MVC’s claims-based data registry allows members to examine sepsis episodes of care across multiple payers and care settings, providing a broader view of healthcare utilization and outcomes than many internal data sources alone.

Participants were introduced to several registry reports that are particularly relevant to sepsis analysis, including:

  • Episode Payments Report, which shows total, price-standardized payments for 30- or 90-day episodes and can be used as a proxy for assessments of utilization across inpatient, professional, post-acute, and readmission services.
  • Episode Utilization Rates Report, which breaks down where patients receive care during and after an episode, such as skilled nursing facilities, home health, inpatient rehabilitation, or emergency department visits.
  • Readmissions Report, which allows members to explore readmission rates for patients by time interval and whether patients return to the index hospital or are readmitted elsewhere.
  • Comorbidities Report, which highlights common coexisting conditions among patients and supports a deeper understanding of patient complexity.
  • Payment by Condition Report, which compares case volume and utilization across conditions and helps contextualize sepsis relative to other medical episodes.

The presentation also included a review of sepsis-related Pay for Performance (P4P) reports available in the MVC registry including a Value Metric Summary Report and Value Metric Trends Report, which allow users to assess their current performance, improvement and achievement baselines and trends over time (Figures 1 and 2). Folk explained how these reports can help teams visualize progress relative to peer hospitals and MVC-wide averages.

Figure 1. MVC Data Registry Value Metric Summary – Blinded Report

MVC Data Registry Value Metric Summary table – Blinded Report

Figure 2. MVC Data Registry Value Metric Trends – Blinded Report

MVC Data Registry Value Metric Trends line graph – Blinded Report

Throughout the presentation, Folk additionally highlighted key registry features such as filtering by hospital type, payer, episode length, patient demographics, and episode time frame. She also reviewed case suppression thresholds and reminded participants that MVC’s data are risk adjusted, allowing for fairer comparisons across hospitals with differing patient populations.

Using Claims Data to Support Improvement

A recurring theme of the discussion was the importance of approaching the registry with curiosity. Participants were encouraged to consider the “five W’s” when reviewing their data and to use the available benchmarking opportunities to compare their hospital’s performance against similar hospitals to help identify realistic opportunities for improvement.

Polling during the session revealed that many participants had limited or no prior experience with an MVC registry review. Registry reviews are a dedicated opportunity for MVC staff to walk members through their site-specific data, focusing on the reports and metrics most relevant to their individual goals. These reviews can help teams move beyond high-level trends to more actionable questions about variation, utilization, and outcomes.

If you’re interested in setting up a time to complete a registry review, please email MVC.

Applying Custom Analytics to Sepsis Care

The workgroup concluded with a second presentation by MVC Analyst Janet Zhang, MPH, highlighting how custom analytic reports can be used to explore specific questions not fully addressed by standard registry reports. Using a recent example focused on sepsis patients and the impact of palliative care, Zang demonstrated how tailored analyses can provide deeper insight into care patterns, outcomes, and opportunities for improvement.

MVC encourages members interested in deeper analyses via custom report to submit a request through the Coordinating Center [Link].

MVC Sepsis Workgroup: Jan. 13, 2026

Health in Action Workgroup – Corewell Health Farmington Hills Hospital

MVC’s second workgroup of January featured Jennifer Hengy, BSN, RN, Internal Quality Improvement Specialist, Dr. Eugene Laveroni, Chief of Surgery, and Leslie Smith, RPh, JD, BCPS, BCIDP, Clinical Pharmacist Specialist from Corewell Health Farmington Hills. Together they showcased how a multidisciplinary team used data, evidence-based guidelines, and workflow redesign to drive meaningful improvements in patients’ safety by reducing SSIs in colorectal surgery.

SSIs remain a significant source of patient harm and financial penalty for hospitals nationwide. Despite advances in sterile technique and surgical technology, data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) continue to show SSIs occur at alarming rates. As Hengy explained, their local data mirrored this challenge with an SSI rate of 9.6% in colorectal surgeries in 2023. This signaled an urgent need for targeted improvement. For Farmington Hills, this started with building the right team.

Building a Team

The initial improvement committee included surgical leadership, quality improvement specialists, pharmacy, nursing education, and anesthesia, with additional stakeholders added as new insights emerged. This diverse group ensured that clinical expertise, frontline workers, and data review were all represented throughout the project. Another key principle of the initiative was fostering a non-punitive culture. Chart reviews and peer discussion focused on learning and system improvement rather than individual blame, helping to sustain engagement across disciplines.

The Discovery Phase: Identifying Key Gaps

The discovery phase proved to be the most challenging but ultimately the most impactful, Hengy shared. The team conducted detailed chart reviews of SSI cases to better understand contributing factors, examining elements including:

  • Use of clean closing gloves, gowns, and closing packs
  • Skin preparation and closure techniques
  • Antibiotic selection, timing, and infusion duration
  • Documentation of infections present at the time of surgery (or PATOS)

Early interventions focused on education about documentation, standardized closing packs, and surgical techniques. While these steps led to modest improvements, they did not produce the level of change the team was seeking so they turned to the experts in antibiotics.

Optimizing Antibiotic Selection and Timing

A deeper dive into perioperative antibiotic practices at Farmington Hills revealed variability in both the antibiotics chosen and their infusion timing. The team identified frequent use of second-line antibiotics in patients with reported penicillin allergies, as well as inconsistencies ensuring antibiotics were fully infused prior to surgical incision.

Smith, a clinical pharmacist specializing in antimicrobial stewardship and a member of Corewell Health Farmington Hills’ SSI workgroup explained that cefazolin remains the preferred first-line prophylactic antibiotic for colorectal surgery and can be safely administered to most patients with reported penicillin allergies. Pharmacy-led education highlighted Cefazolin’s uniquely low risk of cross-reactivity and proven lower SSI rates compared to non-beta-lactam alternatives. Education was delivered through multiple channels, including surgical quality meetings, residents and provider training, newsletters, and real-time feedback to reinforce adherence to standardized protocols.

In addition, the team redesigned workflows to address infusion timing. New processes ensured that antibiotics requiring longer infusion times were started earlier in the preoperative phase. The use of visual job aids, memory tools, and Omnicell alerts reinforced these changes at the point of care (Figures 3 and 4).

Figure 3. Timing of Preoperative Antibiotic Infusion Flyer

Timing of Preoperative Antibiotic Infusion Flyer

Figure 4. Recommended Antibiotic Re-Dosing Interval Guideline Table for Patients Currently Receiving Antibiotics

Recommended Antibiotic Re-Dosing Interval Guideline Table for Patients Currently Receiving Antibiotics

Outcomes and Impact

Following implementation of these antibiotic-focused interventions and revised workflows, Corewell Health Farmington Hills observed a substantial reduction in colorectal SSIs with an infection ratio (SIR) of 0% between February 2024 and August 2024. In conclusion, the presenters emphasized that while zero harm is an aspirational goal, the consistency of guideline adherence and the sustainability of improved practices represented their major successes.

MVC Health in Action Workgroup: Jan. 29, 2026

MVC welcomes workgroup presenters from across Michigan to share their expertise, success stories, initiatives, and solution-focused ideas with MVC members. Please reach out to us via email or by submitting a presentation proposal using this form if you are interested in sharing your work.

14 Jan 2026
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MVC Welcomes Faculty Advisor and Physician Ryan Howard

MVC Welcomes Faculty Advisor and Physician Ryan Howard

January 14, 2026 | 0 Comments | ,

I am so excited to be joining the Michigan Value Collaborative as a Senior Faculty Advisor. I’ve worked closely with the Collaborative Quality Initiatives for the last decade and am thrilled to continue that work in this new role!

By way of introduction, I am a surgeon and healthcare researcher at the University of Michigan. I am Maize and Blue through and through, having completed my undergrad, medical school, residency, and fellowship at the University of Michigan. My clinical practice focuses on bariatric and hernia surgery, and I also specialize in comprehensive obesity treatment with medications and other non-surgical options. What I love most about my practice is partnering with patients to help them accomplish their goals and live their life to the fullest.

My research focuses on studying the quality and safety of surgical care. My passion is taking what we discover through research and turning it into real-world improvements for our patients. To that end, I conduct studies that identify opportunities to improve care, then I use those findings to inform quality improvement efforts to make those changes a reality. My research has explored post-operative opioid prescribing, abdominal wall hernia repair, and long-term health changes after bariatric surgery. I’ve also written a lot about the Collaborative Quality Initiatives, which really demonstrate what you can accomplish through statewide collaboration and partnership.

The Michigan Value Collaborative is such a critical engine for translating our research into real-world improvements for patient care, and I could not be happier to join such a talented and dedicated team. In my role at MVC, I’ll be engaged in studying the quality of surgical care in Michigan, collaborating on quality improvement initiatives, and helping identify new ways to enhance the care we deliver to patients.

I’m truly looking forward to the work ahead and to contributing to MVC’s mission of driving high-value, patient-centered care across the state.

07 Jan 2026
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December Workgroups Highlight RITE-Size Preoperative Testing and MVC Year End Reflections and Goals

December Workgroups Highlight RITE-Size Preoperative Testing and MVC Year End Reflections and Goals

January 7, 2026 | 0 Comments | , , ,

In December, Michigan Value Collaborative’s (MVC) preoperative testing workgroup featured a co-presentation by Kelly Lewton, RN, BSN, Performance Improvement Coordinator for Lake Huron Medical Center, and Nicole Mott, MD, MSCR, a National Clinician Scholar at the University of Michigan supported by the Veterans Administration and a general surgery resident at the University of Colorado. The presentation focused on the Right-Sizing Testing Before Elective Surgery (RITE-Size) trial; Dr. Mott was the lead author on a recently published paper in JAMA Network Open that described the components and impact of the trial, and Lewton shared her first-hand experience as the lead during Lake Huron Medical Center’s participation in the trial. RITE-Size works with hospitals to identify and right-size testing before elective surgery procedures. The second workgroup, health in action, featured MVC Site Engagement Coordinator Emily Bair, MS, MPH, RDN, CSP, and the Engagement team and focused on a year in review of quality initiatives across MVC members. The MVC Coordinating Center hosts one to two workgroup presentations per month covering a variety of topics including post-discharge follow-up, sepsis, cardiac rehabilitation, rural health, preoperative testing, and health in action.

Preoperative Testing Workgroup - RITE-Size & Lake Huron Medical Center

The RITE-Size trial is a partnership among quality improvement teams in Michigan including the Michigan Program on Value Enhancement (MPrOVE), the MVC Coordinating Center, the Michigan Surgical Quality Collaborative (MSQC), and the Anesthesiology Performance Improvement and Reporting Exchange (ASPIRE). Dr. Mott shared that the goal for RITE-Size participants is to lower unnecessary preoperative testing before elective outpatient cholecystectomy, inguinal hernia repair, and lumpectomy. Routine preoperative testing before these low-risk surgeries has shown no clinical benefit to the patient but has led to multiple downstream consequences such as increased spending, care cascades, and treatment delays (Dossett & Wilkinson, 2022).

Dr. Mott described that RITE-Size launched a pilot feasibility study in March 2024 at three hospitals in Michigan. The study aimed to meet criteria in several areas such as feasibility (implementation in the appropriate amount of time), testing rates (reduction), and acceptability and appropriateness (results from interviews). By August 2024, the desired milestones had been achieved, showing a 68% reduction in unnecessary testing at all participating sites (Figure 1).

Figure 1. MVC RITE-Size Pilot Program Testing Rates Over Time Across All Three Sites from March-April 2024 to July-August 2024

line graph depicting reduction in unnecessary preoperative testing at three pilot sites

Some barriers that impacted the study included lack of clarity about guidelines, a need for ongoing education due to the automated nature of testing processes, and coordination across a large healthcare system and/or within the limitations of institutional rules. Elements that led to success included strong leadership through key collaborators, incorporation of the initiative into policy, self-monitoring throughout, and team cohesiveness and communication. The pilot's success allowed RITE-Size to expand to other sites across Michigan.

Lewton from Lake Huron Medical Center (LHMC) followed the RITE-size presentation sharing first-hand experience of participating with the initiative in 2025. She described the site onboarding process, which included a RITE-Size site visit in July 2025 where her team worked with Dana Greene, Jr., Project Manager at MPrOVE, to discuss LHMC interventions and progress over the duration of the program and to schedule ongoing coaching sessions (Figure 2).  After investigating preoperative testing rates, LHMC found that their biggest outlier was electrocardiograms (EKGs) ordered by a particular surgeon.

After the site visit, the lead anesthesiologist met with the surgeon, and they discovered he had been given outdated testing guidelines when he onboarded. With this discovery, their team was able to review their testing guidelines and begin the process of updating and educating team members. By November 2025, LHMC saw a notable decrease in preoperative testing for low-risk surgeries and began development for an updated version of their pre-admission testing (PAT) guidelines.

Figure 2. LHMC Timeline of RITE-Size Pilot Work

Lake Huron Medical Center timeline of RITE-Size pilot work

Lewton rounded out the presentation sharing that the RITE-Size project helped LHMC to update their care guidelines, improve patient care, and reduce unnecessary testing. RITE-Size also provided many resources for staff to help with new process implementation and coached staff to use evidence-based research to guide everyday practice.

MVC Preoperative Testing Workgroup: Dec. 2, 2025

Health in Action Workgroup - MVC Coordinating Center

This month’s health in action workgroup was led by MVC Site Engagement Coordinator Emily Bair, MS, MPH, RDN, CSP, with support from other staff at the MVC Coordinating Center. The workgroup encapsulated a year in review for member QI work in 2025 as well as a look ahead at 2026.

Bair shared result highlights from the MVC QI survey that many MVC members completed in June 2025, noting several common QI efforts across the state (Figure 3). The top areas of focus were sepsis, readmissions, transitions of care, population health management, and emergency department care. Of the 88 survey responses, there were a total of 65 hospitals, 8 physician organizations, and 15 hospital systems represented.

Figure 3. Statewide QI Initiatives in 2025

Statewide QI Initiatives in 2025 depicting sepsis, readmissions, transitions of care, population health management, and emergency department care

Some of the common barriers identified by member sites in the survey included insufficient resources and funds, staff burnout, high turnover, and staff shortages.

The MVC QI survey also sought to consider the needs of its members and asked participants to provide suggestions for how MVC can best support them in the upcoming year (Figure 4). The top requests included data and report-specific training, recordings and summaries of workgroups for those unable to attend events, user-friendly reports, smaller and more frequent breakout sessions during virtual events, and data and QI topics that are helpful for all types of hospital sites.

Figure 4. MVC Member Suggestions for Future Offerings

Graphic Summary of MVC Member Suggestions for Future Offerings

Bair reminded participants that MVC uploads virtual workgroup recordings to MVC’s YouTube channel and shares the link with members in a post-workgroup summary email along with slides and resources from presentations. To support members in accessing additional training opportunities, MVC has launched its new new site coordinator education program in January 2026. The four-module training is designed to provide a more individualized approach to building knowledge as an MVC site coordinator. The MVC QI survey was also a helpful resource for presenter recruitment, developing 2025 workgroup content, and planning 2026 offerings.

Following the 2025 review, participants engaged in an interactive polling activity about QI progress from the past year (Figure 5), areas of focus, and their key accomplishments. Some of the successes shared included improving compliance with the sepsis bundle, maintaining a low readmission rate, increased senior/executive leadership engagement, and a department-led change to improve utilization.

Figure 5. MVC Participants QI Progress Word Cloud

MVC Participants QI Progress Word Cloud

Workgroup participants were asked to share some of their QI priorities for 2026, including ways that their sites are trying to align with other services or programs and how MVC can best support them. Several shared they will focus on the following priorities in 2026:

  1. Sepsis compliance improvement
  2. Streamlining order sets to reduce sepsis fallouts
  3. Reducing readmissions
  4. Building connections with primary care clinics
  5. Reducing length of stay
  6. Reducing unnecessary preoperative testing by participating in the RITE-Size trial
  7. Reducing hospital acquired infections
  8. Interviewing readmissions patients

Participants also shared different ways they are working to align with Collaborative Quality Initiatives (CQI) and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) measures. Several sites noted that they are shifting to align their sepsis metrics with the Michigan Hospital Medicine Safety Consortium (HMS) sepsis initiative and the CMS Hospital Sepsis Program Core Elements.

Members expressed interest in learning more about local quality leaders, developing effective committee structures within their sites, and acquiring new resources that might be available. Additionally, there was great interest in MVC’s new site coordinator education program that kicked off this January with modules that support site coordinators via one-on-one tailored training. Registration for the education program is closed for Q1 – Q2, and a waitlist has been started for Q3 – Q4. If you are a site coordinator interested in participating, you can submit an interest form. [LINK]

MVC welcomes workgroup presenters from across Michigan to share their expertise, success stories, initiatives, and solution-focused ideas with MVC members. Please reach out to us by email or by submitting a presentation proposal here if you are interested in sharing your work in a presentation.

MVC Health in Action Workgroup: Dec. 18, 2025

12 Nov 2025
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MVC Announces Meeting Dates, Workgroups, and Trainings Available in 2026

MVC Announces Meeting Dates, Workgroups, and Trainings Available in 2026

November 12, 2025 | 0 Comments | , , , ,

As we head into the holiday season and final months of calendar year 2025, the MVC Coordinating Center has been planning for its 2026 engagement activities. At MVC's most recent fall collaborative-wide meeting in October, MVC first announced several key dates and updates related to next year’s engagement offerings. 

MVC’s 2026 event calendar is available now [PDF]. Of note, MVC site coordinators can see the dates for 2026 collaborative-wide meetings (Figure 1) and workgroups, as well as the months in which MVC will offer in-person or virtual networking events. MVC will head to Traverse City for its spring collaborative-wide meeting on May 8, 2026. MVC will return to Vistatech in Livonia for its fall collaborative-wide meeting on Oct. 9, 2026. 

Figure 1.

MVC 2026 collaborative-wide meeting dates & locations: May 8, Traverse City, Oct 9, Livonia

Also available is MVC’s Program Year (PY) 2026 P4P Engagement Point Menu [PDF]. Engagement activities offered in 2025 will largely continue along with some minor changes and new additions.

Earning P4P Engagement Points in 2026

In PY 2026 of the MVC Component of the BCBSM P4P Program, members can continue to earn up to two engagement points by completing eligible MVC activities. Many of the engagement point activities from PY 2025 remain available, such as attending or presenting at eligible MVC events, participating in site visits, utilizing MVC custom analytics, and survey submissions (Figure 2). Some of these offerings will have minor adjustments to their allotted point values. For example, attending a collaborative-wide meeting will now be worth 0.4 points compared to 0.25 points in 2025, and worth 1 point in 2026 for attending both meetings versus 0.75 in 2025.

Figure 2.

2026 engagement points menu options

Another minor change is the number of virtual workgroups offered. MVC will offer 18 virtual workgroups in 2026; these workgroups will continue to focus on similar topics and themes, including cardiac rehabilitation, preoperative testing, post-discharge follow-up, rural health, health in action, and sepsis.

New Engagement Offering

MVC is excited to introduce one new offering in 2026: site coordinator education modules. These modules will support site coordinators via one-on-one tailored training that covers a variety of topics (Figure 3). Site coordinators can receive 0.2 engagement points per module and may participate in as few as one module or all four within the performance year. Each quarter of 2026, MVC will offer limited registration to participate in a module. Registration to begin participating in 2026 Q1 will start in December 2025. Training topics provide a review of:

  1. Overview of MVC’s mission, history, P4P program, and site coordinator role
  2. Training on MVC claims data, metrics, and reports
  3. Introduction to MVC’s value-based initiatives and the CQI model
  4. Meeting with other site coordinators to collaborate and discuss practices

Figure 3.

Site coordinator education modules

As part of the online training, site coordinators will complete a structured education plan with individualized guidance to deepen understanding of how to get the most value out of MVC’s offerings.

Earn Engagement Points by Being a Presenter

For those sites participating in the MVC Component of the BCBSM P4P Program, being a presenter at an MVC event is an opportunity to earn 0.5 points toward your hospital’s PY26 engagement points. By sharing successes, lessons learned, and helpful tools with members from across the state, presenters play an important role in improving outcomes for all Michigan patients. MVC’s Engagement team is here to support you every step of the way, making the experience of presenting as easy and comfortable as possible. Presentation proposals are accepted on a rolling basis through MVC's online form.

MVC offers a variety of opportunities to engage with the Coordinating Centers and other members of the collaborative to support peer learning, best practice sharing, and networking. These activities and events foster a collaborative learning environment that enables providers to learn from one another in a cooperative, non-competitive space, and is therefore core to MVC’s efforts to support sustainable, high-value healthcare delivery across the state. We look forward to engaging with you and your teams next year. Please contact the Coordinating Center with any questions [EMAIL].