In the final wrap up session for the 2009 Health System Reform Summit, ACC’s current presidential team commented on the findings of three break out sessions held throughout the Summit. ACC Vice President Ralph Brindis, M.D., F.A.C.C., stressed the importance of showing our willingness to work with CMS on appropriate use and our openness to conducting comparative effectiveness research by using real-time registries. In particular, we need to mature our ambulatory registry efforts, as conducted through our IC3 Quality efforts, so that quality can be measured in all places where care is provided, Ralph said.  

Attendees also used the final hour to clarify essential issues for the College, the issues and concerns we must focus on in the near future to reach consensus and better define. 

Current President Doug Weaver, M.D., F.A.C.C., gave final comments. If this conference shows anything, he said, it is that there is no shortage of ideas and there is a sense of urgency. We need to provide an imperative – although it’s unclear what that should be – for hospitals and CV professionals to use registries. If registries were used in both hospitals and practices for even just a sample of all patients, the result would be more educated members, and would serve to put quality at the front of our minds. None of this is easy, Doug said, but if we can do it convincingly, we will be ready for when patients want to know more; we will be on our way to improving quality, and we will be role models for other specialties. If we can do this, no one will stand in our way in the future.