Multiple Engagements with Leading Healthcare Organizations Strengthen MAeHC Expertise in Supporting Next-Level Patient Engagement and Care Coordination
The Massachusetts eHealth Collaborative (MAeHC), a non-profit pioneer and leader in healthcare delivery through health information technology, announced strong momentum in supporting healthcare organizations’ Patient-Centered Medical Homes (PCMH) initiatives moving into the New Year. With several new and renewed programs, MAeHC continues to assert its leadership in assisting prominent healthcare organizations maximize health outcomes through transitioning to a PCMH.
PCMH is a model for organizing primary care that emphasizes care coordination and communication to transform the organization and delivery of care. The model aims to improve the quality, cost and patients’ and providers’ experience of care. Several prominent health care organizations in NY, including New Dimensions in Health Care and The Center for Discovery as well as a prominent Massachusetts medical center, all engaged MAeHC to assist with achieving National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) PCMH Recognition – from renewals under 2011 standards, to achieving initial recognition as well as Levels II and III recognition. Over 200 physicians have received recognition with MAeHC assistance. Valley Health Partners, the Physician Hospital Organization (PHO) at Holyoke Medical Center, also engaged MAeHC to provide oversight, education and assistance in meeting PCMH goals, including the establishment of a PCMH Oversight Committee. These projects highlight MAeHC’s efforts in helping organizations set the standard for quality improvement and coordinated care that supports access, communication and patient involvement.
Looking to address care processes and identify ways to increase provider performance and improve care quality at an organizational level, Valley Health Partners decided to implement PCMH standards in 2011. MAeHC partnered with the organization to provide oversight, education and assistance in meeting the PCMH goals established by Health New England, a contracted payer committed to this model of care. After initial success, Valley Health Partners once again engaged MAeHC in 2014 for assistance in becoming recognized under the 2011 PCMH Standards and Guidelines. “We wanted to transition from reactive to proactive care for our patients, and we did just that, thanks to the help of the MAeHC team and its deep industry expertise,” said Dr. Robert Fishman, President of Valley Health Partners. “The team assisted the practice with workflow redesign, electronic health record configuration and optimization and process implementation to help transform our practice into a medical home model. With our updated system, patients benefit from our improved engagement and care coordination.”
In its engagements with healthcare organizations, MAeHC leads workflow development and process redesign efforts to implement a sustainable PCMH model of care. The team assists in developing a method of standardization of documentation practices and provides recommendations for ongoing quality improvement activities. This year, members of the MAeHC team completed education and training courses on 2014 NCQA standards and guidelines, becoming certified to provide best-in-class support for organizations in their efforts toward PCMH recognition.
“Coordinated care models are the future of the healthcare industry, and a means for patients to receive the highest quality of care, thanks to having all of their caregivers effectively communicate and work together,” said Pam Minichiello, project director, Massachusetts eHealth Collaborative. “MAeHC is proud to support organizations throughout these meaningful initiatives. More and more, we are seeing organizations work toward this model of care and we are glad to provide the resources to help providers achieve this goal.”
About Valley Health Partners (VHP)
Valley Health Partners (VHP) is a Physician Hospital Organization located in Holyoake, Massachusetts. Membership includes over 150 physicians and health care providers including Holyoake Medical Center, Inc. For over twenty years VHP has been working closely with Managed Care entities to provide quality care to residents of Western Massachusetts.
About Massachusetts eHealth Collaborative (MAeHC) the use of health IT. Formed in 2004 as a collaboration of non-profit health care stakeholders to demonstrate the most effective ways to deploy EHRs and HIE to improve the quality, safety, efficiency, and affordability of care in Massachusetts, MAeHC now works across the United States with a wide range of physician practices, hospitals, state governments, contracting networks, management services organizations, HIE organizations, technology vendors, and consulting firms. To learn more about the Massachusetts eHealth Collaborative, please visit www.maehc.org.