Development fund: Using health information technology and health information exchange to help physician practices improve patient care in Cincinnati

The Foundation's initiative, Aligning Forces for Quality: The Regional Market Place, was designed to help communities across the country align health care forces to improve the quality of health care.Experts agree that health information technology (HIT) and health information exchange (HIE) have the potential to enable and accelerate health care quality improvement. However, electronic health records (EHRs) often remain merely an electronic silo of data with real limitations as a quality improvement tool. HealthBridge and the Cincinnati's Aligning Forces for Quality (AF4Q) Leadership believe integrated HIE and HIT systems could provide critical assistance to practices involved in an innovative practice redesign and payment reform demonstration. Cincinnati's AF4Q Initiative is spearheading a multi-payer Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH) pilot that will include 11 practices that will focus on disease prevention and maintenance of good health. Under the 24 month pilot beginning in October 2009, primary care physicians will coordinate care with specialists in an integrated approach tailored to a patient's specific needs. One key aspect to providing a patient centered medical home is the technology needed to coordinate care and manage patient's health care conditions proactively across settings of care. This grant supports efforts by HealthBridge to work with the practices involved in the Patient Centered Medical Home Pilot. HealthBridge will provide support for data integration, data reporting and practice improvements needed to improve care for patients in primary care settings.

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Grant Details

Amount Awarded $149,998.00

Awarded on: 12/2/2009

Time frame: 1/15/2010 - 1/14/2012

Grant Number: 67190