VTE (VENOUS THROMBOEMBOLISM)

A blood clot that forms within a vein either in an arm or leg which is called deep vein thrombosis (DVT) or in the lung which is called pulmonary embolism (PE). It is a common, lethal disorder that affects hospitalized and non-hospitalized patients and results in long-term complications.

VRE (VANCOMYCIN RESISTANT ENTEROCOCCUS)

A bacterial strain of the type Enterococcus that is resistant to the antibiotic vancomycin.

 

VBP (VALUE-BASED PURCHASING)

A program established by the Affordable Care Act to promote better clinical outcomes for hospital patients as well as improve their experience of care during hospital stays. Incentive payments to hospitals for services provided will be impacted beginning in Federal Fiscal Year 2013 (Oct. 2012), based on either how well they perform on identified measures or how much they improve their performance on those measures compared to their baseline performance. The measures include patient experience (HCAHPS), Outcomes (HAC and Mortality), Care Measures, and Efficiency measures (MSPB), which are defined in this glossary.

VARIAN ARIA

A computerized electronic system and an element of our enterprise electronic health record (eRecord) used at UPMC’s Cancer Center offices for documentation of patient conditions.