How to perform services that increase primary care revenue
CMS states it wants to increase pay to primary care physicians. And while we might quarrel with their strategies or with the speed of achieving the goal, few would quarrel with the goal itself. In recent years, CMS has developed HCPCS codes and adopted CPT codes, some limited to primary care and some not specialty restricted but all likely to be reported by primary care practices. Meanwhile, although payment systems are moving to outcome and value measures, the revenue for most primary care practices continues to be fee-for-serviced based, and alternate payment models (APM) are built on top of fee-for-service.
Some of ...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - April 24, 2016 Category: Journals (General) Authors: Betsy Nicoletti, MS Tags: Policy Medicare Source Type: blogs
Make The Clinician Burnout Epidemic A National Priority
The health care workforce burnout epidemic is a national crisis. The time to act like it is now.
Despite the promise of delivery system reform, especially following passage of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the risk of burnout among physicians (and other health care professionals) represents a significant threat to system-wide achievement of Triple Aim goals: better patient experience of care, improved population health, and lower costs.
In the rush to implement various initiatives, including additional reporting requirements and adoption of new technology such as electronic health records (EHR), and coupled with increasin...
Source: Health Affairs Blog - April 21, 2016 Category: Health Management Authors: Andrew Shin, Tejal Gandhi and Shoshana Herzig Tags: Featured Health Professionals Hospitals Organization and Delivery Quality doctor burnout EHRs physician perspective Physicians triple aim Source Type: blogs
Research and Reviews in the Fastlane 130
In this study, valproate was less efficient and requiring more rescue medications compared to Ketorolac and Metoclopramide. It appears that valproate is not as helpful as a rescue medication as previously thought.
Recommended by: Daniel Cabrera
Emergency Medicine, Pre-Hospital/Retrieval
Bhalla MC et al. Simple Triage Algorithm and Rapid Treatment and Sort, Assess, Lifesaving, Interventions, Treatment, and Transportation mass casualty triage methods for sensitivity, specificity, and predictive values. Am J Emerg Med 2015; 33(11): 1687-91. PMID: 26349777
If you haven’t been exposed to mass casualty triage before, ...
Source: Life in the Fast Lane - April 13, 2016 Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: Anand Swaminathan Tags: Airway Emergency Medicine Gastroenterology Intensive Care Pediatrics Pre-hospital / Retrieval EBM Education literature R&R in the FASTLANE recommendations research and reviews Resuscitation Source Type: blogs
How Solid Is The Primary Care Foundation Of The Medical Home?
The patient-centered medical home (PCMH) has received attention as an improved care delivery model for primary care physicians — and possibly also for specialists who serve as principle physicians for patients with particular chronic conditions. The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA) identified the PCMH model as a presumptively qualifying Alternative Payment Model (APM) that would give physicians higher payments. And a recent summary of the latest evidence found reason for optimism about the potential impact of the PCMH model, not only on quality but also physician morale — raising the...
Source: Health Affairs Blog - March 25, 2016 Category: Health Management Authors: Robert Berenson and Rachel Burton Tags: Featured Health Professionals Hospitals Population Health Quality ACOs Alternative Payment Models MACRA Patient-Centered Medical Home Physicians physicians perspective Primary Care Source Type: blogs
Worksite clinics 2.0? Interview with Crossover CEO Scott Shreeve
https://healthbb.files.wordpress.com/2016/03/shreeve-crossover-mp3-3_20_16-1-59-pm.mp3
I first encountered Dr. Scott Shreeve about a decade ago when he put forth an expansive framework for Health 2.0. We caught up again recently to discuss his next generation worksite clinic company, Crossover Health. I really enjoyed the podcast interview and am bullish on the company. Here’s what we discussed:
(0:10) How does Crossover compare to a traditional primary care practice, patient centered medical home, concierge practice, urgent care center or traditional worksite clinic?
(0:54) You have an onsite model and near site ...
Source: Health Business Blog - March 21, 2016 Category: Health Management Authors: dewe67 Tags: Entrepreneurs Physicians Podcast norwest venture partners primary care Source Type: blogs
Health Affairs March Issue: The Evolving Landscape Of Physician Practice
The March issue of Health Affairs explores public and private measures for reporting quality data in the health care system. The issue also contains several studies pertaining to value in the health care system, including collection and tracking of quality data, hospital participation in accountable care organizations, prescription drug benefits, and others.
This month’s DataGraphic provides a pictorial view of key facts about the changing landscape of physician practice.
The March issue of Health Affairs was supported in part by The Physicians Foundation.
Common Physician Practice Specialties Spend $15.4 Billion Annuall...
Source: Health Affairs Blog - March 7, 2016 Category: Health Management Authors: Lucy Larner Tags: Elsewhere@ Health Affairs Featured Health Affairs journal physicians perspective Source Type: blogs
Mass Health Quality Partners releases patient experience results
Massachusetts Health Quality Partners is a national leader in reporting on patient experience in primary care. Its latest data release at healthcarecompass.org provides valuable information for patients looking for a physician and for practices seeking to understand how they perform in absolute terms and in comparison with others.
You may be familiar with the adage, “What gets measured gets done,” so it really is important what we decide to measure and to publicize. Some patient experience topics, like communication, have been measured and reported for some time. The average score is now 93.5 out of 100 &#...
Source: Health Business Blog - February 2, 2016 Category: Health Management Authors: dewe67 Tags: Patients Physicians Research Uncategorized Source Type: blogs
CME Saves in Overall Healthcare Cost
We have long been vocal proponents of Continuing Medical Education (CME) and the benefits it provides to both the medical community and patients around the country. Recently, a study was published in the Journal of Outcome Measurement in Continuing Healthcare Education to help further prove the benefit of CME, by showing that CME actually prevented over $20 million in HIV-related healthcare costs. The study was a collaboration between HealthHIV, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Medscape, and CMEology.
Study Background
The study estimated the economic impact that happens when physicians and healthcare providers ...
Source: Policy and Medicine - January 22, 2016 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs
Briefing Recap: Barriers To Care For Patients With Complex Health Needs
The 2015 Commonwealth Fund International Health Policy Survey, the 18th annual, gathered information from thousands of primary care physicians in 10 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries. The results showed that while a majority of respondents feel well prepared to manage the care of patients with complex needs, their ability to provide enhanced access and care management is hindered by significant communication and coordination challenges.
The results of the study, which were published in the December 2015 issue of Health Affairs, included these major findings:
Doctors’ views of prac...
Source: Health Affairs Blog - December 14, 2015 Category: Health Management Authors: Jennifer Salopek Tags: Elsewhere@ Health Affairs Featured Global Health Health IT Health Professionals Long-term Services and Supports Public Health Quality Australia Israel OECD patient-centered care Physicians Primary Care Source Type: blogs
Health Affairs December Issue: Affordability, Access, Models Of Care, And More
The December issue of Health Affairs, a variety issue, covers a range of topics: the impact of competition in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplaces, life expectancy determinants, managing complex care in the United States and elsewhere, and others.
DataWatch: The Growing Divide Between Public And Private Inpatient Payment Rates
While geographic variations in US hospital payment rates have been well documented, there is limited evidence about how payment rates for privately insured patients compare with those for Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries. Thomas M. Selden of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AH...
Source: Health Affairs Blog - December 7, 2015 Category: Health Management Authors: Tracy Gnadinger Tags: Elsewhere@ Health Affairs Equity and Disparities Featured Global Health Health Affairs journal marketplace competition marketplace exchanges Social Determinants of Health Source Type: blogs
Why older adults need geriatricians
In his post, “The geriatrician shortage: The problem isn’t what you think,” I completely agree that the current gap in health care professionals’ skills to care well for our aging population is exceedingly complex, reaching well beyond lack of medical school training or funding. Funding for graduate medical education needs to be transformed to match the workforce needs of the nation, with special attention to filling workforce gaps in rural areas. Other health professions (nursing, pharmacy, social work, rehabilitation, and many others) need to enhance geriatric competencies in their schools and residenc...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - November 25, 2015 Category: Journals (General) Authors: Elizabeth Eckstrom, MD Tags: Physician Geriatrics Primary care Source Type: blogs
Direct primary care is a social movement. And it faces the same challenges.
The emergence of direct primary care (DPC) has the characteristics of a social movement, defined as a “purposive and collective attempt of a number of people to change individuals or societal institutions and structures.”
Moreover, the DPC movement has thus far succeeded largely because it is based on a guiding set of strongly-held principles from which its founders have not wavered. The concept of direct primary care as a reordering of the incentives and priorities of doctors and patients away from those of third-party payers has attracted a large following among physicians and members of the public who laud it as ...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - November 20, 2015 Category: Journals (General) Authors: James Breen, MD Tags: Policy Primary care Source Type: blogs
Measuring What Matters In Primary Care
Editor’s Note: This is one of several posts Health Affairs Blog is publishing stemming from sessions at the June 2015 AcademyHealth Annual Research Meeting (ARM) in Minneapolis.
What Do We Mean By ‘Primary Care’
Numerous studies have confirmed the central role of excellent primary care to any health system. Yet how to define the presence of excellent primary care remains a challenge. A recent review found that five characteristics remain the “sine qua non” for primary care practice:
Accessible (first contact) care
Continuous care
Comprehensive care
Coordinated care
Accountable/whole-person care.
Each individual...
Source: Health Affairs Blog - October 6, 2015 Category: Health Management Authors: Eugene Rich and Ann O’Malley Tags: Costs and Spending Featured Health Professionals Hospitals Medicare Organization and Delivery Population Health Quality AcademyHealth 2015 ARM Access chronic conditions clinician productivity comprehensive care continuous care Source Type: blogs
The Legend of the Avoidable Hospital Readmission
By HANS DUVEFELT, MD
A long, long time ago, hospitals existed to admit patients when they were sick, treat them with medicines or surgery and good nursing care, and discharge them after they became well.
Hospital care was at one time a charity, which evolved into a nonprofit service, before it became a Very Big Business.
In olden days, nonprofit hospitals charged patients straightforward fees for their services. Then, when you were just a young whippersnapper or perhaps merely a gleam in your father’s eyes, Medicare and Big Insurance started collecting premiums from workers and dole it out to hospitals when the workers o...
Source: The Health Care Blog - October 6, 2015 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Simon Nath Tags: THCB Source Type: blogs
