The report evaluates the Bridges to Care program and finds that:
1) The program significantly reduced healthcare utilization and costs for participants, with ER visits dropping from 4 to 2 visits on average and costs falling from $11,234 to $5,223 per participant over 6 months.
2) The program improved access to primary care, with 94% of participants having a PCP within 60 days and 24% of uninsured participants gaining insurance.
3) Participants reported significantly better health, with physically and mentally healthy days increasing by about 5 days.
4) Key services like care coordination and health coaching were identified as most important. The program achieved estimated savings of $1.1 million over 6 months for the 184 graduates
Speaker presentation from U.S. News Healthcare of Tomorrow leadership summit, Nov. 17-19, 2019 in Washington, DC. Find out more about this forum at www.usnewshot.com.
Learn the relationship between physician productivity and physician pay to better understand how the healthcare system works. Factors like practice expenses and bonuses are also discussed.
Speaker presentation from U.S. News Healthcare of Tomorrow leadership summit, Nov. 17-19, 2019 in Washington, DC. Find out more about this forum at www.usnewshot.com.
Learn the relationship between physician productivity and physician pay to better understand how the healthcare system works. Factors like practice expenses and bonuses are also discussed.
With patient responsibility becoming an increasing part of clinics AR, you need to make sure you have an effective strategy in place. Learn how to maximize your collections without negatively impacting your relationships with your patients.
This discussion provides an overview of the healthcare industry and some of the challenges facing the healthcare industry today.
The healthcare industry employs nearly 20 million people in the United States and generates about 10% of the private sector GDP. Jobs in this industry are in high demand and pay better than most other industries.
Rapid change is underway in the healthcare industry due to forces like the Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare") and an aging population. Many of these industry-wide changes are impacting how physicians work and who physicians work for.
Chronic Care Management in Post-Acute/LTC SettingPYA, P.C.
PYA Principal Denise Hall and PYA Manager Lori Baker presented an educational session, “Chronic Care Management in Post-Acute/LTC Setting” to members of The Vision Group during The Society for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine’s (AMDA) Annual Conference.
Patient-Centered Medical Home: Navigating through Recognition and Rewardsathenahealth
Join athenahealth as we delve into Patient-Centered Medical Homes and the complications that come with navigating through the regulations to achieve level three recognition status.
Understanding Relative Value Units (RVUs) - How Doctors Are Paid TodayManage My Practice
This presentation reviews the evolution of the RBRVS model of weighting each medical service provided by a physician, giving examples of how RVUs determine what physicians are paid today.
NCQA’s Accreditation process provides payers with a comprehensive framework to improve quality of care and services. It allows members and employers to compare health plan performance across various plans and against industry benchmarks. NCQA accreditation has 3 parts – HEDIS, Patient experience CAHPS measures and NCQA standards
Meaningful Use in 2015: 6 things to do before the year’s endCureMD
What's in these slides?
1 ) Implementation timeline and requirements.
2 ) What measures have made it to the final list and how to achieve them?
3 ) A checklist of things to do before the year’s end.
4 ) What to expect from stage 3?
PYA Principal J. Michael Keegan, MD, recently presented “Pacing Volume-to-Value Transition” and “The ROI of Avoiding Antibiotic Overuse” at the AlaHA Annual Meeting, June 8-11, 2016. The presentation focused on the importance of antibiotic stewardship programs (ASP) for population health. The presentation explained:
Why the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is proposing a requirement that hospitals implement ASPs to stem the rise of resistant bacteria.
Why PYA is invested in offering hospitals a proven program for improving patient safety while saving costs.
What constitutes a successful ASP.
Certain insurance companies require prior approval to give coverage for medications. Prescribing physicians must gain approval before billing their claims to avoid denials.
Care Delivery with Electronic Prior Authorization 5-7-14 NCPDP Conference Pr...Forward360 LLC
Pursuing medication prior authorization (PA) with paper forms, faxes, and phone calls is time-consuming and disruptive to clinical care. What is the impact? How can this improve with adoption of the NCPDP electronic PA standard?
Learn why prescribers rate ePA as one of the most desired capabilities within their e-prescribing workflow. Hear what doctors, pharmacies and PBMs have to say about their experience with the ePA pilot and promises they see for the future.
Chronic Care Management: 6 Tips for Documentation SuccessManny Oliverez
Take advantage of the Chronic Care Reimbursement opportunity with these tips!
Healthcare providers can be reimbursed for the hours that they spend on the phone, filling prescriptions, and completing paperwork. Medicare now offers reimbursement for doctors who are assisting patients with chronic medical conditions.
The key to reimbursement from Medicare is all in the required documentation for Chronic Care Management (CCM). Here are some tips for documenting for CCM.
Visit Our Website: http://www.CaptureBilling.com/
Meaningful Use Stage 2 and Health Information Exchange (HIE)MassEHealth
Transformational intent of Meaningful Use (MU) and the increased trend toward interoperability in MU Stage 2 (MU2); MU2 objectives with an HIE component and their MU2 measures; Approaches to achieving the transitions of care; Available public health registries and their current status and submission pathway; How to find a trading partner and best practices to engaging
Chronic Care Management Coding Guidelines Effective January 1, 2017Manny Oliverez
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently released new billing requirements for chronic care management services. CMS initiated these latest billing changes in order to improve payment accuracy for CCM services as well as reduce the administrative burden for providers.
Visit Our Website: http://www.CaptureBilling.com/
Transforming Clinical Practice InitiativeCitiusTech
The Transforming Clinical Practice Initiative (TCPI) is designed to help small practices and clinicians achieve large-scale health transformation. The initiative is designed to support more than 140,000 clinician practices over four years duration in sharing, adapting and further developing their comprehensive quality improvement strategies. The TCPI is one part of a unique strategy advanced by the Affordable Care Act to strengthen the quality of patient care and manage health care expenditures, ultimately saving the taxpayer from substantial costs. This document describes the initiative in detail with the type of participants, eligibility and reporting requirements of the participants. Understanding the implementation of this initiative not only helps clinicians, but opens up a huge market for Healthcare IT companies offering the products and services like EHR implementation, Integration, EHR/ Data Migration, Implementation of HIE etc.
Did you know that ALL of your Medicare reimbursements will be docked if you don't participate in the PQRS reporting program? This applies to mental / behavioral heath and substance abuse providers - get the full scoop in our guide.
Transforming Post-Acute Care with IMPACTCitiusTech
On October 6, 2014, a bipartisan bill on Improving Medicare Post-Acute Care Transformation (IMPACT) was signed. The IMPACT Act seeks to standardize assessments for vital care issues across the gamut of post-acute care (PAC) providers and builds a framework to ensure that the delivered care is mindful of the patient needs; thereby eliminating the current silo-focused approach to quality measurement and resource utilization.
With patient responsibility becoming an increasing part of clinics AR, you need to make sure you have an effective strategy in place. Learn how to maximize your collections without negatively impacting your relationships with your patients.
This discussion provides an overview of the healthcare industry and some of the challenges facing the healthcare industry today.
The healthcare industry employs nearly 20 million people in the United States and generates about 10% of the private sector GDP. Jobs in this industry are in high demand and pay better than most other industries.
Rapid change is underway in the healthcare industry due to forces like the Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare") and an aging population. Many of these industry-wide changes are impacting how physicians work and who physicians work for.
Chronic Care Management in Post-Acute/LTC SettingPYA, P.C.
PYA Principal Denise Hall and PYA Manager Lori Baker presented an educational session, “Chronic Care Management in Post-Acute/LTC Setting” to members of The Vision Group during The Society for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine’s (AMDA) Annual Conference.
Patient-Centered Medical Home: Navigating through Recognition and Rewardsathenahealth
Join athenahealth as we delve into Patient-Centered Medical Homes and the complications that come with navigating through the regulations to achieve level three recognition status.
Understanding Relative Value Units (RVUs) - How Doctors Are Paid TodayManage My Practice
This presentation reviews the evolution of the RBRVS model of weighting each medical service provided by a physician, giving examples of how RVUs determine what physicians are paid today.
NCQA’s Accreditation process provides payers with a comprehensive framework to improve quality of care and services. It allows members and employers to compare health plan performance across various plans and against industry benchmarks. NCQA accreditation has 3 parts – HEDIS, Patient experience CAHPS measures and NCQA standards
Meaningful Use in 2015: 6 things to do before the year’s endCureMD
What's in these slides?
1 ) Implementation timeline and requirements.
2 ) What measures have made it to the final list and how to achieve them?
3 ) A checklist of things to do before the year’s end.
4 ) What to expect from stage 3?
PYA Principal J. Michael Keegan, MD, recently presented “Pacing Volume-to-Value Transition” and “The ROI of Avoiding Antibiotic Overuse” at the AlaHA Annual Meeting, June 8-11, 2016. The presentation focused on the importance of antibiotic stewardship programs (ASP) for population health. The presentation explained:
Why the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is proposing a requirement that hospitals implement ASPs to stem the rise of resistant bacteria.
Why PYA is invested in offering hospitals a proven program for improving patient safety while saving costs.
What constitutes a successful ASP.
Certain insurance companies require prior approval to give coverage for medications. Prescribing physicians must gain approval before billing their claims to avoid denials.
Care Delivery with Electronic Prior Authorization 5-7-14 NCPDP Conference Pr...Forward360 LLC
Pursuing medication prior authorization (PA) with paper forms, faxes, and phone calls is time-consuming and disruptive to clinical care. What is the impact? How can this improve with adoption of the NCPDP electronic PA standard?
Learn why prescribers rate ePA as one of the most desired capabilities within their e-prescribing workflow. Hear what doctors, pharmacies and PBMs have to say about their experience with the ePA pilot and promises they see for the future.
Chronic Care Management: 6 Tips for Documentation SuccessManny Oliverez
Take advantage of the Chronic Care Reimbursement opportunity with these tips!
Healthcare providers can be reimbursed for the hours that they spend on the phone, filling prescriptions, and completing paperwork. Medicare now offers reimbursement for doctors who are assisting patients with chronic medical conditions.
The key to reimbursement from Medicare is all in the required documentation for Chronic Care Management (CCM). Here are some tips for documenting for CCM.
Visit Our Website: http://www.CaptureBilling.com/
Meaningful Use Stage 2 and Health Information Exchange (HIE)MassEHealth
Transformational intent of Meaningful Use (MU) and the increased trend toward interoperability in MU Stage 2 (MU2); MU2 objectives with an HIE component and their MU2 measures; Approaches to achieving the transitions of care; Available public health registries and their current status and submission pathway; How to find a trading partner and best practices to engaging
Chronic Care Management Coding Guidelines Effective January 1, 2017Manny Oliverez
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently released new billing requirements for chronic care management services. CMS initiated these latest billing changes in order to improve payment accuracy for CCM services as well as reduce the administrative burden for providers.
Visit Our Website: http://www.CaptureBilling.com/
Transforming Clinical Practice InitiativeCitiusTech
The Transforming Clinical Practice Initiative (TCPI) is designed to help small practices and clinicians achieve large-scale health transformation. The initiative is designed to support more than 140,000 clinician practices over four years duration in sharing, adapting and further developing their comprehensive quality improvement strategies. The TCPI is one part of a unique strategy advanced by the Affordable Care Act to strengthen the quality of patient care and manage health care expenditures, ultimately saving the taxpayer from substantial costs. This document describes the initiative in detail with the type of participants, eligibility and reporting requirements of the participants. Understanding the implementation of this initiative not only helps clinicians, but opens up a huge market for Healthcare IT companies offering the products and services like EHR implementation, Integration, EHR/ Data Migration, Implementation of HIE etc.
Did you know that ALL of your Medicare reimbursements will be docked if you don't participate in the PQRS reporting program? This applies to mental / behavioral heath and substance abuse providers - get the full scoop in our guide.
Transforming Post-Acute Care with IMPACTCitiusTech
On October 6, 2014, a bipartisan bill on Improving Medicare Post-Acute Care Transformation (IMPACT) was signed. The IMPACT Act seeks to standardize assessments for vital care issues across the gamut of post-acute care (PAC) providers and builds a framework to ensure that the delivered care is mindful of the patient needs; thereby eliminating the current silo-focused approach to quality measurement and resource utilization.
"Theory and Practice of Games Localisation: Academic Training vs Professional Reality in Spain and the United Kingdom"
My presentation, together with Jennifer Vela, at the II International Conference on Translation and Accessibility in Video Games and Virtual Worlds. Barcelona, March 2012
The Potential of Autoethnography for Generating User/Survivor Knowledge by Dr Sarah Carr - a presentation from the symposium on social movements and their contributions to sociological knowledge on mental health at the University of Wolverhampton. Held on 13 June 2014.
Material de exposición utilizado en el XXVI Seminario Anual de Investigación 2015 del CIES. Mesa de Investigación Género y Derechos Humanos.
Expositor: Juan Narvaéz Henriquez, Subdirector de ProGobernabilidad
11 de noviembre de 2015
Material de capacitación utilizado en el I Encuentro Nacional de Planeamiento Estratégico de los Gobiernos Regionales
Expositor: Víctor Vargas Espejo, Presidente CEPLAN
11 de setiembre de 2015
1
Hospital Readmission Rates
Kaylee Chauvin
West Coast University
NURS 350: Research in Nursing
Mrs. Sandy Daisley
September 5th, 2021
2
Hospital Readmission Rates
Hospital readmission is characterized as an emergency clinic affirmation that happens
inside a predefined time after release from the principal confirmation. The re-hospitalization rate
was considered a sign of the eminence of the hospital's clinic and was displayed to reflect a
measure of patient attention. Re-hospitalization results in longer hospital stays and more
emergency clinic resource use. An increase in readmission rates and increasing the use of
innovation, leads to increased incomes, even if the consideration may mean that it may not be
effective. Re-hospitalization is an exorbitant cost for the clinic. Rather than spending money on
complex systems and high-severity patients, clinics can level assets by providing more start-up
confirmations for low-severity patients, or with appropriate release programs. You can invest in
reducing readmissions. Various procedures are used to solve the readmission rate problem, as
outlined in the PICOT question. It is used to determine best practices for working on results
within a month.
Description and background information
Once patients are released from the medical clinic, they imagine going through their days
recovering a lot at home until they improve (Upadhyay et al., 2019). Lamentably, for some
elderly patients, that does not occur. Medical clinic readmission for elderly patients is not just
distressing; however, it can likewise negatively affect a patient's general well-being. The
additional time a patient is in a clinic, the more probable they are to create genuine, conceivably
hazardous diseases, for example, medical clinic procured pneumonia. Finding a way ways to
decrease clinic readmissions in the elderly is fundamental. In addition to the fact that it protects
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we are interested in the nursing procedures (interventions)
3
the clinic from potential Medicare fines, however, it helps keep probably the weakest individuals
from the community (the elderly) strong and healthy.
Various strategies are used to address the issue of readmission rates. Framing partnership
with nearby medical clinics and different suppliers, helps make the recuperation interaction
simpler for elderly patients. At the point when they are released from the clinic, they're ready to
rapidly and easily find doctors, home medical care groups, and emergency clinics that not
exclusively will give quality therapy however that approach all past clinical records and
important data. Elderly patients can without much of a stretch become overpowered when given
a lengthy discharge document (Bjorvatn, 2013). HCPs should attempt to keep release guidelines
simple to peruse and clear. Neglecting to plan follow-u ...
NYU Langone Medical Center’s TJA BPCI Experience: Lessons in How to Maximize ...Wellbe
The Bundled Payments for Care Improvement (BPCI) Initiative began generating data in January of 2013. Dr. Iorio will outline the challenges and benefits of implementing BPCI for Total Joint Arthroplasty at an urban, tertiary, academic medical center with a hybrid compensation model. Early results from the implementation of a Medicare BPCI Model 2 primary TJA program demonstrate cost-savings with an improvement in quality of care metrics and continued cost savings through year 3 of our experience. Changes in patient optimization, care coordination, clinical care pathways, and evidence-based protocols are the key to improving the quality metrics and cost effectiveness within the implementation of the Bundled Payment for Care Initiative, thus bringing increased value to our TJA patients.
Maximizing Value in a Bundled Environment – Keys to Success:
• Evidence based, cost effectiveness analysis
• Standardized protocol adoption
• Transparent data
• Perioperative Patient Optimization
• Care management
• Physician-hospital alignment with Gain sharing
• Enhanced pain relief and rehabilitation protocols
• Blood management and rational VTED prophylaxis
About the Speaker:
Richard Iorio, MD, is the William and Susan Jaffe Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at New York University Langone Medical Center Hospital for Joint Diseases and Chief of Adult Reconstruction at NYU Langone HJD. He co-founded Labrador Healthcare Consulting Services, Responsive Risk Solutions, and the Value Based Healthcare Consortium in 2015. He is a member of the Board of Directors for LIMA, the Lifetime Initiative for the Management of Arthritis. Dr. Iorio is a national expert in physician and hospital quality and safety and a leader in the implementation of alternate payment paradigms in orthopaedic surgery.
4508 Final Quality Project Part 2 Clinical Quality Measur.docxblondellchancy
4508 Final Quality Project
Part 2: Clinical Quality Measures for Hospitals
Overview
This activity focuses on Quality Measures for Hospitals. The activity uses online resources from
the CMS website. The Clinical Quality Measures for Hospitals activity focuses on the Hospital
Value Based Purchasing (VBP) Program
Background
The National Quality Strategy (NQS) was first published in March 2011 as the National Strategy
for Quality Improvement in Health Care, and is led by the Agency for Healthcare Research and
Quality on behalf of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Today, the NQS
serves as a guide for identifying and prioritizing quality improvement efforts, sharing lessons
learned, and measuring the collective success of Federal, State, and public‐ and private‐sector
healthcare stakeholders across the country.
The Aims of the NQS are threefold:
Better Care: Improve the overall quality by making health care more patient‐centered,
reliable, accessible, and safe.
Healthy People/Healthy Communities: Improve the health of the U.S. population by
supporting proven interventions to address behavioral, social, and environmental
determinants of health in addition to delivering higher‐quality care.
Affordable Care: Reduce the cost of quality health care for individuals, families,
employers, and government.
To align with this, CMS has set goals for their Quality Strategy. These include:
• Make care safer by reducing harm caused in the delivery of care
– Improve support for a culture of safety
– Reduce inappropriate and unnecessary care
– Prevent or minimize harm in all settings
• Strengthen person and family engagement as partners in their care
• Promote effective communication and coordination of care
• Promote effective prevention and treatment of chronic disease
• Work with communities to promote best practices of healthy living
• Make care affordable
CMS’s vision states that if we can find better ways to pay providers, deliver care, and distribute
information than patients can receive better care, health dollars are spent more wisely, and
there are healthier communities, a healthier economy, and a healthier county. It is with this in
mind that they have created multiple quality payment programs.
In January 2015, the Department of Health and Human Services made an announcement that
set in place measurable goals and a timeline to move the Medicare program towards paying
providers based on the quality of care rather than the quantity. This was the first time in the
history of the program that explicit goals were set. They invited private sector payers to match
or exceed these goals as well. These goals included:
1. Alternative Payment Models
a. 30% of Medicare payments tied to quality or value through Alternative Payment
models by the end of 2016 and 50% by the end of 2018
2. Linking Fee‐For‐Service payments to Quality/Value
a. 85% of all Medi ...
4508 Final Quality Project Part 2 Clinical Quality Measurromeliadoan
4508 Final Quality Project
Part 2: Clinical Quality Measures for Hospitals
Overview
This activity focuses on Quality Measures for Hospitals. The activity uses online resources from
the CMS website. The Clinical Quality Measures for Hospitals activity focuses on the Hospital
Value Based Purchasing (VBP) Program
Background
The National Quality Strategy (NQS) was first published in March 2011 as the National Strategy
for Quality Improvement in Health Care, and is led by the Agency for Healthcare Research and
Quality on behalf of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Today, the NQS
serves as a guide for identifying and prioritizing quality improvement efforts, sharing lessons
learned, and measuring the collective success of Federal, State, and public‐ and private‐sector
healthcare stakeholders across the country.
The Aims of the NQS are threefold:
Better Care: Improve the overall quality by making health care more patient‐centered,
reliable, accessible, and safe.
Healthy People/Healthy Communities: Improve the health of the U.S. population by
supporting proven interventions to address behavioral, social, and environmental
determinants of health in addition to delivering higher‐quality care.
Affordable Care: Reduce the cost of quality health care for individuals, families,
employers, and government.
To align with this, CMS has set goals for their Quality Strategy. These include:
• Make care safer by reducing harm caused in the delivery of care
– Improve support for a culture of safety
– Reduce inappropriate and unnecessary care
– Prevent or minimize harm in all settings
• Strengthen person and family engagement as partners in their care
• Promote effective communication and coordination of care
• Promote effective prevention and treatment of chronic disease
• Work with communities to promote best practices of healthy living
• Make care affordable
CMS’s vision states that if we can find better ways to pay providers, deliver care, and distribute
information than patients can receive better care, health dollars are spent more wisely, and
there are healthier communities, a healthier economy, and a healthier county. It is with this in
mind that they have created multiple quality payment programs.
In January 2015, the Department of Health and Human Services made an announcement that
set in place measurable goals and a timeline to move the Medicare program towards paying
providers based on the quality of care rather than the quantity. This was the first time in the
history of the program that explicit goals were set. They invited private sector payers to match
or exceed these goals as well. These goals included:
1. Alternative Payment Models
a. 30% of Medicare payments tied to quality or value through Alternative Payment
models by the end of 2016 and 50% by the end of 2018
2. Linking Fee‐For‐Service payments to Quality/Value
a. 85% of all Medi ...
2023 — Focus on the Margin (Vitalware by Health Catalyst)Health Catalyst
In this webinar, we will look at pressures exerted in 2023 on the margin and explore how cost management and complete charge capture can protect and enhance the margin. We will provide details on patient activity costing versus the cost-to-charge ratio (CCR), looking at common themes for lost charges and providing an example of where patient activity cost management was able to provide insight into cost containment and practice patterns of a system provider.
The CMS Innovation Center hosted a special webinar featuring Dr. Patrick Conway, CMS Deputy Administrator for Innovation and Quality and CMS Chief Medical Officer, on Monday, November 10, 2014 from 10:30am – 11:30 am ET. Dr. Conway will provided an update about the work of the CMS Innovation Center and the models being tested to improve better care for patients, better health for our communities, and lower costs through improvement for our health care system. Opportunities for questions were provided.
- - -
CMS Innovation Center
http://innovation.cms.gov
We accept comments in the spirit of our comment policy:
http://newmedia.hhs.gov/standards/comment_policy.html
CMS Privacy Policy
http://cms.gov/About-CMS/Agency-Information/Aboutwebsite/Privacy-Policy.html
PYA Consulting Manager Linda ClenDening helped connect the dots between the data at the 2013 AHIMA Convention and Exhibit in Atlanta. She spoke during the Innovation educational track on the topic: “Beyond Meaningful Use: Connecting Quality Data Requirements to Business Operational Improvements.”
Uncover Hidden Population Using Predictive Modeling Tool VitreosHealth
Using Predictive Modeling Tool to Identify at Risk Patients who has a chance of becoming users of High-Cost Healthcare service and subsequently Reducing PMPM (Per Member Per Month) Costs While Increasing Member Satisfaction
The Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation (CMS Innovation Center) hosted the first of two webinars on November 19 to describe the final rule and respond to questions about the Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement Model.
- - -
CMS Innovation Center
http://innovation.cms.gov
We accept comments in the spirit of our comment policy:
http://newmedia.hhs.gov/standards/comment_policy.html
CMS Privacy Policy
http://cms.gov/About-CMS/Agency-Information/Aboutwebsite/Privacy-Policy.html
1. Bridges to Care Program Evaluation
Final Report
Prepared for Metro Community Providers Network
by
December 19, 2014
2601 S Lemay Suite 7, #109 Fort Collins, CO 80525 (970) 818-9309 www.SmithLehmann.com
2. Table of Contents
Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 1
Methods................................................................................................................................ 1
Results................................................................................................................................... 1
Conclusions ....................................................................................................................................... 13
Recommendations............................................................................................................................. 13
ii | P a g e
3. Introduction
The Metro Community Provider Network (MCPN) contracted Smith & Lehmann Consulting to determine
whether the Bridges to Care (B2C) program is effectively reducing unnecessary healthcare utilization;
identify key aspects of the program that are critical to success; and develop strategies for integrating key
aspects into existing service delivery once external funding for the program ends. The evaluation covers
these aspects of the program over the 2013-2014 timeframe.
Methods
Analysis of existing data
Smith & Lehmann analyzed MCPN’s existing data from the Bridges to Care program to identify the key
program components associated with success and cost-effectiveness. Data from Bridges to Care
graduates were used for this analysis. Over the 2013-2014 timeframe, an estimated 70% of B2C
enrollees successfully graduated from the program. Bridges to Care graduates needed to have at least
six months of hospital utilization data both prior to and following B2C enrollment to be included in the
analyses of cost savings and utilization reduction. All graduates were included in the analyses of self-
reported health status.
Administrative data analysis
Our team utilized data provided by MCPN to create a budget analysis. This analysis provided information
about Bridges to Care’s current and anticipated operating costs, including personnel, equipment, travel,
and training expenses. Smith & Lehmann analyzed projected operating costs and provided information
about estimated staffing levels necessary to maintaining a cost-neutral version of the program. The cost
calculations are based on the estimated costs of serving all enrollees; both program graduates and
program dropouts. The savings calculations are based on savings attributed only to program graduates.
Qualitative interviews
Smith & Lehmann staff conducted interviews with key MCPN staff and stakeholders to provide a
complete picture about the key services and service delivery priorities in Bridges to Care as well as the
unanticipated benefits or challenges of the program. These interviews also provided an opportunity for
a brief discussion of the program’s sustainability plans. Smith & Lehmann conducted one external
interview with the Manager of the Health Care Innovation Award at Truman Medical Center to gain
perspective on the similarities and differences between their model and the Bridges to Care program.
Results
Below are the results for MCPN’s Bridges to Care program evaluation. Results are organized by the key
evaluation questions. For the purpose of this analysis, high utilizers are defined as patients averaging
five or more visits, either emergency room (ER) or in-patient (IP) admissions, during the six months prior
to enrollment. Medium utilizers are defined as having four visits pre-enrollment, and low utilizers are
defined as having three or fewer visits during the six months pre-enrollment in the Bridges to Care
program. Owing to the preponderance of statistically significant results at the p<.05 level or better, all
results depicted in graphs are statistically significant, unless noted otherwise.
1 | P a g e
4. Is the Bridges to Care program reducing utilization of the health care system?
♦ The average number of visits among Bridges to Care participants has been significantly
decreasing. For ER visits, the average has dropped from almost four visits prior to enrollment to
two visits after graduation; admissions have also seen a similar, significant drop (Figure 1).
♦ Among all utilizers, average number of ER visits and hospital admissions has shown a significant
decline post-graduation. The most dramatic differences tend to be the mid (four visits) to high
(five or more visits) utilizers, where their average number of ER visits decreases by about 3 visits
after graduating Bridges to Care (Figure 2). Hospital admissions have seen the most significant
change with the low and medium utilizers (Figure 3). This trend is logical due to the fact that mid
to low-utilizers generally frequent their primary care provider (PCP) more often than high-
utilizers who demonstrate more ER visits, and therefore mid- to low-utilizers have a greater
capacity to demonstrate a significant decrease in admissions.
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
Pre B2C Post B2C
#ofvisits
Figure 1. Average 6-month Hospital Utilization Among All B2C
Patients
ER visits Hospital admissions
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Pre B2C Post B2C
#ofvisits
Figure 2. Average 6-month ER Visits by Utilization Level
Low Utilizers
Mid Utilizers
High Utilizers
2 | P a g e
5. ♦ The Bridges to Care program has had a significant impact among uninsured and Medicaid
patients. The average number of ER visits from uninsured patients decreases from 3.8 visits pre-
enrollment to 1.8 visits after graduating from the program (Figure 4). Similarly, Medicaid
patients decrease their visits from 4.2 visits pre-enrollment to 2.8 visits after graduation (Figure
5). Hospital admissions have been significantly dropping among uninsured patients (from 0.7
visits pre-enrollment to 0.3 visits post-graduation); however, Medicaid patients have not
experienced a similar, significant drop (0.5 visits pre-enrollment to 0.3 visits post-graduation) in
hospital admissions.
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
Pre B2C Post B2C
#ofvisits
Figure 3. Average 6-month Hospital Inpatient Visits by
Utilization Category
Low Utilizers
Mid Utilizers
High Utilizers
*N.S.
*Not significant
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
Pre B2C Post B2C
#ofvisits
Figure 4. Average Number of 6-month
Hospital Visits by Uninsured Patients
ER Visits Hospital Admissions
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
Pre B2C Post B2C
#ofvisits
Figure 5. Average Number of 6-month
Hospital Visits by Medicaid Patients
ER Visits Hospital Admissions
*N.S.
*Not significant
3 | P a g e
6. ♦ Utilization among patients who kept or gained a PCP during their time in the Bridges to Care
program also shows similar and promising results, based on self-report. The average number of
ER visits and hospital admissions of patients who kept or gained a PCP has been dropping
significantly upon graduating from the program (Figure 6 and 7). Patients who have a PCP 60
days into the program are significantly reducing their visits as well (Figure 8).
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
Pre B2C Post B2C
#ofvisits
Figure 8. Average Number of 6-month Hospital Visits of
Patients with PCP After 60 Days
ER Visits Hospital Admissions
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
Pre B2C Post B2C
#ofvisits
Figure 6. Average Number of 6-month
Hospital Visits of Patients Keeping PCP
ER Visits Hospital Admissions
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
Pre B2C Post B2C
#ofvisits
Figure 7. Average Number of 6-month
Hospital Visits of Patients Gaining PCP
ER Visits Hospital Admissions
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7. Even among patients without a PCP after 60 days, ER visits are still showing a downward trend,
from 3.1 visits before enrollment to 1.7 visits after graduation (Figure 9). Hospital admissions are
also going down; however, this is not a significant trend.
Is the program improving patient access to primary care providers (PCP)? Is the program increasing
access to health insurance?
♦ Overall results indicate that 94% of Bridges to Care participants have a PCP 60 days after
enrollment and 89% of those who did not have a PCP upon enrollment get one (Figure 10). As
noted earlier, this is based on self-reported data.
♦ Among all Bridges to Care participants, 67% keep their PCP after graduation, and 25% gain a
PCP. Five percent lose their PCP and 3% never gain a PCP.
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
Pre B2C Post B2C
#ofvisits Figure 9. Average Number of 6-month Visits of Patients
without PCP After 60 Days
ER Visits Hospital Admissions
*N.S.
*Not Significant
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Enrollment 30 days 60 days
Figure 10. B2C Patients with Primary Care Provider at
Enrollment and Follow-up
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8. ♦ Overall, 24% of all uninsured Bridges to Care participants have graduated with insurance in 2013
and 2014, to date. In 2013, approximately 13% of uninsured Bridges to Care participants gained
insurance at the time of graduation; this number increases to almost 40% in 2014 (Figure 11).
This increase indicates that Bridges to Care has been successful at linking patients into the
health insurance newly available under the Affordable Care Act.
Is the program successful at improving patients’ overall health and well-being?
♦ Participants in the program are showing significant health improvements (Figure 12). The
number of self-reported healthy days increases by at least five at 60-day follow-up. Most
notably, physically healthy days increase the most from about 10 days at enrollment to almost
19 days at follow-up.
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
2013 2014
Figure 11. B2C Patients Gaining Insurance After
B2C Enrollment
0
5
10
15
20
25
Baseline 60 days
#ofhealthydaysinpast30
Figure 12. B2C Patients Increase Healthy Days
Physically healthy Mentally healthy No activity disruption
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9. What are Bridges to Care’s core services and non-essential services?
♦ The most important components, according to key
Bridges to Care stakeholders, are the care coordination and
team integration and the health-coaching component.
Connecting with the patient, taking “the time to identify their
specific and different needs,” is the most important aspect of
the program and is a core service provided by Bridges to Care
staff.
♦ The program gives PCPs outside of Bridges to Care a
“short intensive intervention to stabilize the patients” where
“most PCPs don’t have the time and resources to do that
stabilization.” It gives providers the extra and often needed
opportunity to help their patients put their lives back together.
♦ The behavioral health-coaching element found in
Bridges to Care is crucial due to high mental health concerns
among patients in Aurora. This is an element that is missing in
other MCPN programs.
♦ Connecting with patients right away, providing medical reconciliation and finding a primary care
home for patients are also very important services to the program.
♦ Stakeholders agree that the program’s services impact goes beyond the individual but also
impacts the community. Bridges to Care “helps to develop healthier individuals that are now
able to be more productive members of society.”
♦ The only group that does not see the benefits of Bridges to Care would be those with substance
abuse issues. There are no services in the program that would create the needed impact for
these individuals.
♦ Due to the integrated nature of the team approach to care coordination, it is difficult to
determine the existence of non-essential services within the Bridges to Care program.
Conducting a randomized study design and assigning different levels of certain services to
incoming participants will help answer this question.
What is the estimated cost savings of the Bridges to Care program?
♦ Overall gross costs have been significantly decreasing among Bridges to Care participants. On
average, before participants enter the program, each patient accrues $11,234 in patient care
costs over a six-month period. After graduating from Bridges to Care, average patient care costs
fall to $5,223 over a six-month period (Figure 14). This result indicates that by participating in
the Bridges to Care program, patient costs decreased by an average of $6,011 per participant
over a six-month period. Based on the assumption that a total of 184 patients graduated from
Bridges to Care during the time period of the analysis (all graduates through March 21, 2014),
total cost-savings of the program was approximately $1,106,024 over the six-month time period.
Smith & Lehmann only considered the effects of the intervention on six-months of post-
7 | P a g e
10. utilization records. Further research would be necessary to assess the duration of the program-
effect on reduced utilization.
♦ When gross hospital costs are broken out month-by-month pre and post enrollment in Bridges
to Care, there is an overall downward trend (Figure 15). Patient costs gradually increase at
approximately four months pre-enrollment and then steadily decrease three months after
graduating from the program.
♦ Gross hospital costs declined significantly for each utilization group, as seen in Figure 16. The
estimated 6-month gross cost savings of Bridges to Care are $1,106,024, or between $4,254 and
$5,223 per graduate. Costs for low and medium utilizers were similar throughout. The Bridges to
Care program significantly reduced gross costs for high utilizers to just under the pre-enrollment
levels of the low and medium utilizers. Interestingly, Figure 17 shows that the gross costs for the
highest utilizers fall to be within the range of the low and mid-level utilizers by six months post-
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
6 mo.
Pre
B2C
5 mo.
Pre
B2C
4 mo.
Pre
B2C
3 mo.
Pre
B2C
2 mo.
Pre
B2C
1 mo.
Pre
B2C
B2C
mo. 1
B2C
mo. 2
1 mo.
Post
B2C
2 mo.
Post
B2C
3 mo.
Post
B2C
4 mo.
Post
B2C
5 mo.
Post
B2C
6 mo.
Post
B2C
Figure 15. Gross Monthly UCH Hospital Costs 6 Months Pre and
Post B2C
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$5,000
$5,500
$6,000
B2C
Treatment
$0
$2,000
$4,000
$6,000
$8,000
$10,000
$12,000
Pre B2C Post B2C
Figure 14. Change in Gross 6-month UCH Care Costs for
B2C Graduates
8 | P a g e
11. graduation from Bridges to Care. What is unknown is whether that decline continues beyond
the six-month post-treatment mark, and if so, for how long are cost-savings sustained.
$0
$2,000
$4,000
$6,000
$8,000
$10,000
$12,000
$14,000
$16,000
Gross costs pre B2C Gross costs post B2C
Figure 16. 6-Month Gross UCH Care Costs Before and
After B2C by Utilization Level
Low Utilizers Mid Utilizers High Utilizers
$0
$1,000
$2,000
$3,000
$4,000
$5,000
6 mo.
Pre
B2C
5 mo.
Pre
B2C
4 mo.
Pre
B2C
3 mo.
Pre
B2C
2 mo.
Pre
B2C
1 mo.
Pre
B2C
B2C
mo. 1
B2C
mo. 2
1 mo.
Post
B2C
2 mo.
Post
B2C
3 mo.
Post
B2C
4 mo.
Post
B2C
5 mo.
Post
B2C
6 mo.
Post
B2C
Figure 17. Gross Monthly UCH Hospital Costs 6 Months Pre and Post B2C
by Utilization Level
Low utilizers Medium utilizers High utilizers
$0
$1,000
$2,000
$4,000
$5,000
$6,000
B2C
Treatment
9 | P a g e
12. What practices can be implemented to ensure the sustainability of the program?
♦ Key stakeholders agree that additional funding
is needed to sustain the program. Grants will not
always cover all the costs of the program.
♦ Stakeholders suggested melding Bridges to Care
into the Accountable Care Collaborative (ACC) or into
the greater MCPN population in order to continue
providing services after pilot funding for the program
has been expended.
♦ Through the pilot program, staff found that not
all patients need the 60-day program model. “Some
patients really don’t need this after one month, there
are certain people that are able to do a lot more on their own…I think that each patient is so
different, and it’s a good starting point but [now we should be] looking at the individualization of
the program per patient.” By creating guidelines for early graduation, MCPN could reduce the
overall cost per patient because patients with lower needs would help absorb some of the costs
of the higher needs patients that require a longer intervention.
♦ Moving providers back into the clinics has also been suggested as an adjustment to the current
model that would help to ensure sustainability. This does not mean losing touch with these
providers but rather allowing the community health workers, health coaches, and clinical care
coordinators to continue to work as a team, enhancing the link between the patients and their
providers at the MCPN clinic or otherwise.
♦ To be self-sustaining, stakeholders agreed that patients need to be enrolled in Medicaid more
quickly. To help with this, one stakeholder suggested having a technician help patients through
the enrollment process either once they enter the clinic or even during an in-home consultation.
♦ Stakeholders stressed the importance of
preserving the basic team-structure of the
Bridges to Care program and hoped the
lessons learned would be applied to other
programs resulting in an MCPN-wide care
coordination team.
10 | P a g e
13. What staffing levels/configurations are needed to continue the program post-funding?
♦ Annual budget for the current Bridges to Care program is approximately $1.9 million after
accounting for incoming Medicaid reimbursements. While this budget exceeds MCPN’s ability to
continue the program, Smith & Lehmann examined two alternative budget scenarios
demonstrating the funding necessary in continuing Bridges to Care services.
♦ Alternative 1: One-Team Model
For this alternative scenario, Bridges to Care would reduce its model to one team consisting of
the following staff: advanced practice nurse (NP), medical assistant (MA), clinical care
coordinator (CCC), health coach (HC), and community health worker. Changes made to the
current Bridges to Care model under this alternative include: reducing the model to one care
team, targeting mid to high utilizers specifically, and expanding the program service area. This
alternative budget includes current project directors, a clinical operations manager, project
assistant, HR specialist, grant specialist, and administrative assistant (Table 1). This alternative
scenario also assumes MCPN will continue to contract with Aurora Mental Health for a
behavioral health provider (BHP) and a behavioral health case manager (BHCM). Administrative
staff levels remain similar to the current model because it is assumed that a push for continued
funding will be necessary to sustainability of Bridges to Care. Administrative staff will also need
to build relationships with additional hospitals and clinics to expand the reach of Bridges to
Care. Cutting staff back to one team instead of two will aid in decreasing costs, and under this
scenario MCPN would need to come up with approximately $793,672 per year to fund the one-
team model. While patients on Medicaid, and other forms of insurance, will provide a fractional
reimbursement, the current reimbursement rates are not adequate enough to ensure sufficient
reimbursement of program costs and should not be considered as a source of revenue in
sustainability planning.
Table 1. Projected B2C Budget: One-Team Model
Category Amount
Personnel $673,457
Equipment $1,700
Travel $4,900
Training $3,750
Aurora Mental Health Services $109,865
Total Annual Budget $793,672
♦ Alternative 2: MCPN Care Coordination Team
For this alternative scenario, the Bridges to Care services would be offered under an MCPN Care
Coordination team to patients identified as mid and high utilizers within the broader MCPN
population. Under this model, MCPN would reduce its care coordination team to consist of the
following staff: a clinical care coordinator (CCC), health coach (HC), and community health
worker. MCPN’s Care Coordination team would be established to target mid to high utilizers
11 | P a g e
14. specifically, and be expanded to provide intervention services where the need is greatest. This
alternative budget includes one project director, project assistant, HR specialist, and
administrative assistant (Table 2). This alternative scenario also assumes MCPN will not continue
to contract with Aurora Mental Health for a behavioral health provider (BHP) and a behavioral
health case manager (BHCM). Administrative staff will continue to build relationships with
additional hospitals and clinics to expand the reach of MCPN’s care coordination services.
Cutting back on medical staff and bringing patients into the clinic to see their provider will
greatly decrease costs (by approximately $252,169), and under this scenario MCPN would need
to come up with approximately $431,638 per year to fund an MCPN Care Coordination team.
While patients on Medicaid, and other forms of insurance, will provide a fractional
reimbursement, the current reimbursement rates are not adequate enough to ensure sufficient
reimbursement of program costs and should not be considered as a source of revenue in
sustainability planning.
Table 2. Projected Budget: Extension Team Scenario
Category Amount
Personnel $426,448
Equipment $0
Travel $2,940
Training $2,250
Aurora Mental Health Services $0
Total Annual Budget $431,638
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15. Conclusions
The Metro Community Provider Network (MCPN) contracted Smith & Lehmann Consulting to determine
whether the Bridges to Care program is effectively reducing unnecessary healthcare utilization; identify
key aspects of the program that are critical to success; and develop strategies for integrating key aspects
into existing service delivery once external funding for the program ends. Smith & Lehmann’s evaluation
covered these aspects of the program over the 2013-2014 timeframe.
Smith & Lehmann analyzed MCPN’s existing data from the Bridges to Care program and identified that
all utilizers demonstrated a statistically significant decrease in the average number of ER visits and
hospital admissions after completing the Bridges to Care program. The most dramatic differences tend
to be seen in the mid to high utilizers, where their average number of ER visits decreases by about 3
visits after graduating Bridges to Care. Results indicate that the Bridges to Care program successfully
links patients to primary care providers. Overall results indicated that 94% of Bridges to Care
participants have a primary care provider (PCP) 60 days after enrollment and 89% of those who did not
have a PCP upon enrollment get one. In the effort to connect patients to insurance, 24% of all uninsured
Bridges to Care participants graduated with insurance in 2013 and 2014, to date. In 2013, approximately
13% of uninsured Bridges to Care participants gained insurance at the time of graduation; this number
increases to almost 40% in 2014. Overall results indicate Bridges to Care achieved a significant reduction
in utilization resulting in $1.1 million of patient cost savings realized over the treatment of 184 patients.
Recommendations
♦ Smith & Lehmann recommends MCPN expand the availability of Bridges to Care services to all
MCPN patients and strive to access the larger population of the greater Denver area. MCPN
should also discuss and consider expanding this program to different health care areas, such as
pediatrics.
♦ Smith & Lehmann recommends MCPN develop guidelines to allow for early graduation from the
program. Allowing the intensity of program services to fluctuate with individual patient needs
will decrease overall per patient costs because those with fewer needs will help absorb some of
the costs of the high-needs patients that require a longer intervention.
♦ Additionally, Smith & Lehmann recommends implementing a long term study to determine how
long the impact of the program lasts for participants. Having check-ins beyond six months will be
able to assess the need to develop “booster shots” where patients are reminded of what they
learned through the program and how to make better decisions with their health care.
Additional cost of “booster shots” would be minimal since patients would not be going through
the entire program again but would still be receiving the individual care and attention needed to
get them back on track.
♦ If MCPN wishes to determine whether a scaled-back (or lower-dose) Bridges to Care model will
be equally as effective as the current model, Smith & Lehmann recommends that MCPN
implement a randomized trial or a similarly rigorous study of alternative models. Under the
randomized trial, patients would need to be randomly assigned to receive either the current
model or a scaled-back model in order to rigorously assess whether outcomes would be the
13 | P a g e
16. same for both groups. In order to test a customized-dosage model that provides early
graduation for clients showing rapid improvement, a historical control group of 2013-2014 B2C
graduates should be used to ensure that outcomes remain the same or better under the
modified model.
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