Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Quality Improvement for Institutions is a suite of registries, quality campaigns, accreditation services and clinical toolkits offered to health care facilities and their staff in a convenient, single website.  These online assets are intended to inspire and accelerate quality improvement in the facility while saving staff time and energy by providing ready-to-go, off-the-shelf programs and tools.

The website for Quality Improvement for Institutions is CVQuality.ACC.org. 

Individuals from NCDR Registry participating hospitals have access to the program as part of their NCDR fee.

Individuals from participating PINNACLE Registry practices have access to the program as part of their PINNACLE Registry association. 

Hospitals that do not participate in an NCDR hospital registry or PINNACLE Registry can join Quality Improvement for Institutions for an annual fee. 

*At this time, hospitals accredited through ACC Accreditation Services do not have access to the quality improvement resources available on CVQuality.ACC.org, unless they are also part of an NCDR registry. The ACC is working to provide access to ACC Accredited facilities.

The American College of Cardiology developed ACC Quality Improvement for Institutions to provide facilities with all the proven quality improvement tools that the College has developed over the years—all available on one website, with unlimited access for every member of the cardiac care team.

Quality Improvement for Institutions is included in the registry cost for facilities enrolled in one or more eligible NCDR registries (ACTION Registry, CARE Registry, CathPCI Registry, ICD Registry, and IMPACT Registry), and is free for PINNACLE Registry participants.  For facilities not enrolled in an eligible NCDR registry or PINNACLE Registry facility, the cost is $5,000 per year.

Visit the About and Get Started sections at the top of the homepage. You can also submit a Request for Information to get informational materials.

Yes. This program is available to facilities which have the appropriate contract and/or payment in place.

You do not have to be an ACC member to participate in Quality Improvement for Institutions. Participation is determined by an individual’s association with a valid NCDR hospital registry, PINNACLE  registry participation, or an institution which has paid the participation fee.

Any individual associated with a valid NCDR registry participation, or institution which has paid the participation fee can have access to the Quality Improvement for Institutions content.

Each facility should designate a Quality Improvement for Institutions Program Manager who will be the primary point of contact for ACC quality campaigns and toolkits. If an institution does not designate a Quality Improvement for Institutions Program Manager, then the NCDR Executive Sponsor will become the program manager.

If you need to change your facility's Quality Improvement for Institutions Program Manager or Practice Manager, please call Customer Service at (800) 257-4737.

There is no limit to the number of individuals at your facility who can take advantage of this program.

The program is designed for use by clinicians, nurses, administrators, and other members of the cardiac care team.

To activate your account and get access to program content, register on the Quality Improvement for Institutions website, CVQuality.ACC.org. Go to the Register page and complete the online form. Note that you will need to associate your individual account with your facility listed in a drop down list.

Yes. Single sign-on between ACC.org and CVQuality.ACC.org is available. 

 

CVQuality: This login provides access to Quality Improvement for Institution’s exclusive quality improvement tools and resources. Individuals associated with a valid NCDR hospital registry or PINNACLE Registry participation that have activated their account and received a CVQuality/ACC username and password are able to log in.

Accreditation: This login provides access to the specific accreditation service(s) purchased by a facility. Whether you have one or several accreditations, the same login will provide access to all of your active accreditations.

NCDR: The NCDR Registry Participant login provides access for registry participants that have credentials to access their registry data.

To enroll your facility in Quality Improvement for Institutions, you can submit a Request for Information form (located on the CVQuality.ACC.org website). You will receive an enrollment packet with instructions on how to enroll your facility in the program. For facilities not enrolled in an eligible NCDR hospital registry or PINNACLE Registry practice, the cost is $5,000 per year.

Submit a Request for Information form online. You will receive an enrollment packet with instructions on how to enroll your hospital in a registry. You can also email ncdr@acc.org or call 800-257-4737.

If you cannot locate your facility in the drop down list, please call (800) 257-4737. Your institution may not be listed because of its current NCDR hospital registry or PINNACLE Registry enrollment status.

At this time, there is not an option to select multiple facilities. However, you can select any NCDR hospital or PINNACLE practice with which you are affiliated  from the facility drop down list.

Visit CVQuality.ACC.org, and click on the Registry Participant Login link. This will point you to the private NCDR website where you can log in with your registry-specific credentials.

No. Single sign on between NCDR.com and CVQuality.ACC.org is not available at this time. You will continue to use your NCDR Registry login credentials to access your registry-specific content.

The Hospital Master Agreement is a multipurpose contract and the Business Associate Agreement is required as part of it. The Business Associate Agreement only applies if the facility participates in NCDR.

The ACTION Registry performance Achievement Award Program and Quality Improvement for Institutions Participation Promotion Program are different.  

The ACTION Registry Performance Achievement Award Program recognizes facilities based on their performance on quality measures using registry data. 

Facilities participating in the Quality Improvement for Institutions are offered a Participation Promotion Kit to showcase their commitment to quality cardiovascular care.

As an individual associated with a participating NCDR facility in Quality Improvement for Institutions, you must contact your NCDR Registry Site Manager (RSM) to request access to your hospital data.

The Quality improvement tools and resources available on CVQuality.ACC.org include the assessments, toolkits, webinars, and listservs within each of the ACC’s Quality Campaigns, and tools within Clinical Toolkits.

NCDR/PINNACLE FACILITIES: If you are part of an NCDR/PINNACLE facilities: The QI tools and resources on CVQuality.ACC.org are free as part of your NCDR membership fee. Find your NCDR facility to create your individual account for free access to Quality Campaigns, Clinical Toolkits and more. 

NON-NCDR FACILITIES: If your facility is not a participant with the NCDR’s hospital or PINNACLE registries, please submit a Request for Information and to gain access to exclusive QI tools and resources.

ACCREDITATION CUSTOMERS: At this time, hospitals accredited through ACC Accreditation services do not have access to the quality improvement resources available on CVQuality.ACC.org, unless they are also part of an NCDR registry. The ACC is working to provide access to ACC Accredited facilities.

Clinical Toolkits are designed to address a common quality-related problem. Toolkits generally include checklists, reminders, slide presentations, and mobile apps.  These tools can be used to implement best practices for improving a specific process (e.g., identification of heart failure patient upon admission) or outcome of care (e.g., readmissions) in your facility.

Door to Balloon (D2B), Hospital to Home (H2H), Surviving MI, Patient Navigator Focus MI

Generally, a Quality Campaign consists of success metrics, assessments, toolkits, webinars, and a listserv to guide participants in their implementation efforts.

In the top right corner of the CVQuality.ACC.org homepage, hover over the “Login” button, and you will see the Accreditation login button appear in the dropdown selection.

Submit a Request for Information form online. You will be contacted by ACC Accreditation Services about your interest in a CV service line accreditation. You can also email accreditationinfo@acc.org or call 877-271-4176.