Relationship Between Nursing Home Compare Improvement in Function Quality Measure and Physical Recovery After Hip Replacement

Objective: To determine whether patients with a total or partial hip replacement admitted to a skilled nursing facility (SNF) after the improvement in function quality measure was added to Nursing Home Compare in July 2016 have greater physical recovery than patients admitted before July 2016. Design: Pre (January 1, 2015-June 30, 2016) vs post (July 1, 2016-December 31, 2017) design. Setting: Skilled nursing facilities (n=12,829). Participants: Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries (N=106,832) discharged from acute hospitals to SNF after hip replacement between January 1, 2015 and December 31, 2017. Interventions: Not applicable. Main Outcome Measures: The 5- and 14-day minimum data set assessments were used to calculate total scores for the quality measure, self-care, mobility, and balance. We calculated the average adjusted change per 10 days and any improvement between the 5- and 14-day assessments. Results: The average adjusted change per 10 days for the quality measure total score for patients admitted before July 2016 and after July 2016 was 1.00 points (standard error, 0010) and 1.06 points (standard error, 0.010), respectively (P<.01). This was a relative increase of 6.0%. Among patients admitted to a SNF before July 2016, 44.4% (standard error, 0.06) had any improvement in the quality measure total score compared with 45.5% (standard error, 0.23) of patients admitted after July 2016 (P<.01). This was a relative increase of 2.5%. The adjusted change per 10 days and percentage of patients who had any improvement in the total scores for self-care, mobility, and balance were all significantly higher after July 2016. Conclusions: Patients admitted to a SNF after a hip replacement after July 2016 had greater physical recovery than patients admitted before the improvement in function quality measure was added to Nursing Home Compare.