You will find that this month's Annals of Family Medicine is dedicated to "Transforming Primary Care Practice." The series of articles provides an in-depth analysis of'what it takes to fulfill the goals of the patient-centered medical home and primary care excellence, including a rare look at costs of transformation. They also serve as a reminder that as we continue on this road to health system transformation, the journey will incredibly challenging and resource intensive, but deeply rewarding when given the opportunity to look back and reflect on stories of success.
We are excited to announce that the topic will be highlighted in an upcoming PCPCC webinar on Thursday, June 6th. You'll get to hear from "Change Agents in Action," AHRQ's David Meyers, as well as on-the-ground experts from Vermont Blueprint for Health and AHEC North Carolina.
Finally, as we head into our last week of eHealth month, we are grateful for the encouraging stories we've been able to share from providers, patients, and many other stakeholders. We look forward to "bringing it home" next week during our Monthly National Briefing, where RAND's Dr. Art Kellermann and Vanguard Health's Spencer Jones, will discuss the key barriers to widespread adoption of health IT and what its future might hold.
Enjoy the holiday weekend!
Sincerely, Marci Nielsen, PhD, MPH
Chief Executive Officer
Primary Care Spotlight:
In Search of Joy in Practice
Back at the PCPCC Annual Fall Conference in October, you heard from Drs. Christine and Thomas Sinsky talk about their experience visiting nearly two dozen high-performing primary care practices "In Search of Joy in Practice." That research is now published In the Annals of Family Medicine, where primary care innovations, including care team models, health IT, and use of data, are having a profound impact on patient health, and bringing the joy back to primary care for so many providers and members of the care team.
In Case You Missed IT... Last week's webinar highlighted a medical home model that uses advanced health IT to provide coordinated, team-based primary care for over 3,000 high-risk, elderly patients in assisted living and group home facilities.
On Wednesday, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced that Medicare and Medicaid providers in more than half of doctors' offices and 80% of hospitals will have electronic health records by the end of the year.
According to HHS, about 17% of physicians used electronic records in 2008, but now 50% "have demonstrated meaningful use and received an incentive payment." About 9% of hospitals had electronic records in 2008, but HHS found that 80% have now demonstrated use.
May webinar highlights: “The Commercial Market: Alternative Payment Models for Primary Care” Nate Murray explains w… https://t.co/KX9Wi2w6oY —
10 months 3 weeks ago