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Medical Briefs EXCELLUS BLUECROSS BLUESHIELD AND ST. JOSEPH'S HOSPITAL HEALTH CENTER COLLABORATE ON ACCOUNTABLE COST AND QUALITY ARRANGEMENT, AIM TO IMPROVE CARE AND PROVIDE HIGHER VALUE TO PATIENTS Excellus BlueCross BlueShield and St. Joseph's Hospital Health Center today announced the formation of an innovative alliance designed to achieve enhanced care coordination, improve patient satisfaction and outcomes, and reduce healthcare costs. The collaboration, known as an account - able cost and quality arrangement (ACQA), will benefit Excellus BlueCross BlueShield members who receive care from doctors af- filiated with St. Joseph's. Using St. Joseph's comprehensive, integrated system of physicians and ambulatory services, the collaboration will provide better healthcare options for patients by: + Increasing physician-patient engagement to coordinate care and improve health- care experience and outcomes + Improving quality of care + Aligning payment with quality, patient outcomes and value The goals of delivering better healthcare quality and avoiding unnecessary costs can be achieved through such efforts as improving access to primary care medical services (to manage chronic illnesses such as diabetes and reduce the need for emer - gency room visits), improving medication adherence rates and limiting duplication of services. "We're excited to collaborate with St. Joseph's on this new approach that redefines our relationship," says Christopher Booth, Chief Executive Officer, Excellus BlueCross BlueShield. "ACQAs emphasize value over volume. Incentives are based on quality of care, not volume of services. They strive to make everyone in the healthcare delivery system — patients, healthcare pro - viders and health insurance companies — responsible stewards of healthcare dollars." "We believe this innovative arrangement provides an exciting opportunity to align the interests of the physicians in our system, the hospital and Excellus BlueCross BlueShield to improve community health while enhancing affordability," says Kathryn Ruscitto, President and Chief Executive Officer of St. Joseph's. Providers must meet quality standards to ensure that savings are achieved through improving care coordination and providing care that is appropriate, safe and timely. The ACQA assesses quality performance by using national quality measures, which include performance thresholds for diabetes, blood pressure and coronary artery disease, just to name a few. The ACQA offers valuable opportunities for both organizations to bring together existing skills and resources to benefit the patient. The health plan provides extensive information and health analytics to assist St. Joseph's in understanding cost drivers, quality performance and the health needs of the targeted population. Excellus BlueCross BlueShield expects the number of members tied to some form of a value-based payment program such as an ACQA to increase dramatically by 2016. These types of innovative payment arrange - ments require no action on behalf of the member or his/her employer. Provider par - ticipation in an Excellus BlueCross BlueShield ACQA is voluntary. Excellus BlueCross BlueShield will continue to work with upstate New York providers to support the formation of additional ACQAs. "We are committed to the success of this program and realize that establishing new approaches for care delivery takes patience and time," Booth says. CROUSE HOSPITAL APPOINTS CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER Crouse Hospital has appointed Kim Rose as Chief Information Officer (CIO) for the hospital and its affiliated entities. Rose most recently served as director of information technology for the hospital. In her new role as CIO, Rose will work with senior leadership to provide vision and stra - tegic direction in the continued development and implementation of Crouse's systemwide health information technology operations. This includes working with not only the hospital but also affiliates Crouse Medical Practice and Community Memorial Hospital in Hamilton, as well as developing capability to enhance information sharing between Crouse and community physicians. "How health care is delivered is changing rapidly, and success will be dependent on systems and technology that allow for inte - gration, greater connectivity and data sharing across the entire healthcare continuum, not just the hospital," says Crouse CEO Kimberly Boynton, who adds that the increasing emphasis on population health management, physician integration, patient engagement and clinical quality all require a high-level strategic health IT focus. Rose holds a master's degree in informa - tion resource management from Syracuse University. She previously served as director of information technology for Crouse Medical Practice, PLLC, and PPC, both in Syracuse. She has provided leadership and direc - tion to the hospital's Information Technology Department since 2012, overseeing numer - ous major technology initiatives, including a new emergency department patient tracker system, the hospital's MyHealthChart patient portal, computerized physician order entry and medication administration systems. She currently is leading the implementation of Soarian, the hospital's EHR system, which is scheduled to go live in 2015. Adds Boynton, "As we continue to develop the Crouse integrated delivery network — one of our key strategic initia - tives — strong, focused senior-level leadership in health information technology is critical for the future growth and continued success of our organization." ■ 2 2 | Central New York MD NEWS ■ M D N E W S . CO M