Utah’s University Health Care Network Relies on Medical Assistants and IT in its “Patient-Centered, Physician-Efficient Visit”

SNI traveled to Utah in January to attend the “Learning Days" conference hosted every two months by the University of Utah’s University Health Care (UHC) outpatient clinics.  UHC has developed an innovative primary care model, reliant on medical assistants with advanced training and a well-integrated electronic medical record, in their “Patient-Centered, Physician-Efficient Visit.” Click here to see materials from this conference.  For more information, contact Hunter Gatewood.

The Specialty Care Access Initiative (SCAI), a partnership of Kaiser Permanente, CAPH/SNI, and the California Primary Care Association, is convening a series of roundtable forums to spread knowledge, share promising practices and increase networking between providers. The next forum is scheduled for March 6 at the San Francisco Airport Doubletree Hotel. The SCAI will present/discuss its draft Scope of Practice discussion paper. In addition, providers highlighted in the discussion paper will share examples of how they have addressed scope of practice issues. Presenters include JoAnn Schottinger, MD, Kaiser Permanente; Jeremy Fish, MD, Contra Costa Health Services Residency Program; Ann Murphy, MD, Shasta Community Health Center; Kelly Pfeifer, MD, Clinic Ole; Eric Schten, MD, Marin Community Clinic; and LAC + USC Medical Center. For additional information, please visit our website, or contact Sarah Brooks.

Hospital Patient Satisfaction Data to be Publicly Reported in March

The first national public reporting of Hospital Patient Satisfaction (HCAHPS) results will occur in March 2008. Hospital results for patients discharged between October 2006 and June 2007 will be displayed on the Hospital Compare website. Public reporting of participating hospitals' HCAHPS results will consist of 10 items, including: six composite topics, two individual topics on cleanliness and quietness, and two overall ratings. In addition, the 'number of completed surveys' and the 'survey response rate' for each participating hospital will be posted. For more information, go to http://www.hcahpsonline.org or contact Lance Mageno.

Blue Cross of California (BCC) Offers Hospitals a New Incentive for Quality Performance

The BCC “Quality-In-Sights Hospital Incentive Program” (Q-HIP) aligns financial incentives with hospital performance on patient safety, health outcomes, and patient experience. Q-HIP uses quality measures that have been identified for public reporting by the California Hospital Assessment and Reporting Taskforce (CHART) to assess hospital performance. Hospitals with a BCC contract that submit quality performance data to CHART will receive a positive adjustment to its Inpatient Hospital Fixed Payment Rate. The amount of the adjustment is performance dependent. Q-HIP is not punitive, so there is no downside adjustment based on hospital performance. To view the program details, click here. Please contact Lance Mageno if you have any additional questions.

Low-Literacy, Spanish/English Palliative Care Brochure Available to Patients

Having identified a need for written materials to explain palliative and hospice care options to patients with advanced illness and their family members, the UCSF Center for the Health Professions recently published the brochure When You or Your Family Members Have a Serious Illness: What Are Your Care Options?. The document, funded by The California Endowment, builds off the work undertaken by Santa Clara Valley Medical Center during their participation in UCSF/SNI’s LEADing Organizational Change: Advancing Quality through Culturally Responsive Care (LEAD) program. To access both the English and Spanish versions of the brochure, click here.

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