Angioplasty database allows docs to share information.

A statewide angioplasty data registry has helped Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan (BCBSM) save $8 million annually in cardiovascular care costs. About 20 hospitals affiliated with the health plan use the database.

The registry includes an established data set that coincides with published treatment guidelines and information from cases at participating hospitals. It allows the Blues plan to gather information such as patient risk status, medication, results and clinical and technical complications, according to David A. Share, M.D. Then, BCBSM uses the data to create risk adjustment models, said Share, clinical director for the Center for Health Care Quality and Evaluative Studies at the health plan. Such models can help participating hospitals exchange quality data and conduct comparative analysis for the 25,000 angioplasty cases they collectively perform each year.

Cardiologists and nurses who use the registry must fill out a form containing about 200 data elements, including disease information, complications medications, procedures and the patient's status at discharge. Administrative staff typically enters completed forms by hand, and the information is checked be fore it's uploaded.

Known as the Cardiovascular Consortium Angioplasty Continuous Quality Improvement Project, the registry began as a pilot program at nine affiliated hospitals in 1997.