American Joint Replacement Registry

The cost of healthcare procedures is constantly rising. Along with the rising costs, more emphasis is being placed on increasing the quality and effectiveness of healthcare services. Over 700,000 hip and knee arthroplasty surgeries are performed yearly, and that number is expected to grow significantly over the next 20 years and beyond. The American Joint Replacement Registry (AJRR) is a non-profit organization established to foster the creation of a national center for data collection, and is dedicated to the improvement in arthroplasty patient care.

History

In partnership with the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), the AJRR was founded in 2009 with the goal to optimize patient outcomes through collection of data on all primary and revision total joint replacement procedures in the U.S., while enhancing patient safety, improving quality of care, and reducing the cost for patients. Since then, the AJRR has grown to over 290 members with over 70,000 procedures in their database. Both figures are expected to increase by year's end, and will continue to do so as more participants join the registry.

In February 2010, The AAOS ratified the AJRR Board of Directors. In November 2010, AJRR received 501(c)(3) status, and in December 2010, their Business Plan was finalized and approved by the AJRR Board of Directors.

In March 2011, the Pilot Program was initiated, with successful Level I data transmission and collection from pilot sites completed in July of the same year.

In 2012, the national registry software was launched. In August 2012, Jeffrey P. Knezovich, CAE, was hired as AJRR's first Executive Director.

In November 2013, AJRR launched a pilot program of Level II, Level III, and Level IV data collection systems. That pilot study is expected to be concluded by the end of the third quarter 2014.

In February 2014, the AJRR was named to the National Quality Registry Network (NQRN) Council, an initiative of the American Medical Association; and, in May, 2014, the AJRR was named a Qualified Clinical Data Registry (QCDR) by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).

On January 1, 2015, the AJRR officially became a freestanding association.

References

    • About the AJRR
    • Mary Atkinson Smith; William Todd Smith (September/October 2012). "The American Joint Replacement Registry". Orthopaedic Nursing, Vol. 31;5, p 296-299
    • Etkin CD, Hobson SE (October 2012) American Joint Replacement Registry continues to grow. AAOS Now.
    • Elizabeth Hofheinz, M.P.H., M.Ed. (June 25, 2014). "AMERICAN JOINT REPLACEMENT REGISTRY RECEIVES SPECIAL DESIGNATION". Orthopedics This Week
    • Press Release, American Joint Replacement Registry (AJRR) tapped to provide orthopaedic patient outcome data to Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services

    (CMS)

    External links