October 6, 2009
Local Health System One of Three Selected by American Medical Group Association
The American Medical Group Association is honoring ThedaCare Physicians for its patient-focused care.
The AMGA named ThedaCare Physicians as one of three Acclaim Award Honorees for 2009. The awards honor organizations that provide ideal delivery of care to patients according to the Institute of Medicine (IOM) standards.
ThedaCare Physicians was recognized for its new model of care delivery, which completely redesigned the patient office visit from the initial call for an appointment through the entire office visit and continuing with follow-up care. Teams of ThedaCare employees developed the new processes using the organization’s lean production principles.
“We are honored to receive this award since it recognizes all of the lean transformation work that has been happening at several of our primary care sites. Patients have really benefited from the redesigned care model since the entire clinic visit is designed to meet the needs of each patient,” said Jenny Redman-Schell, vice president of ThedaCare’s Physician Services division. “Patients have improved access to their provider with minimal wait time. We also do the lab draws right in the exam room and we can get the results before the patient leaves so a complete plan of care can be developed and any follow-up needs can be addressed.”
ThedaCare Physicians has rolled out its new model of care delivery at ThedaCare Physicians-Kimberly; ThedaCare Physicians-Internal Medicine, Appleton; ThedaCare Physicians-New London; ThedaCare Physicians-Neenah East; ThedaCare Physicians-Pediatrics, Appleton; ThedaCare Physicians-North; and ThedaCare Physicians-Clintonville.
AMGA's prestigious Acclaim Award honors organizations that embrace the IOM's aims by incorporating the six attributes of an ideal healthcare delivery system as identified by the Commonwealth Fund Commission on a High Performance Health System. These organizations demonstrated that:
- Clinically relevant patient information can be available to all providers at the point of care and to patients, preferably through electronic health record systems.
- Patient care is coordinated among multiple providers, and transitions across care settings are actively managed.
- All members of the care team both within and across settings have accountability to each other, review each other's work, and collaborate to reliably deliver high-quality, high value care.
- Patients have easy access to appropriate care, including after hours; there are multiple points of entry to the system; and providers are culturally competent and responsive to patients' needs.
- There is clear accountability for the total care of patients.
- The system is continuously innovating and learning
ThedaCare Physicians’ redesigned office visits produced notable improvements in the areas of safety, quality, access, patient/provider/staff satisfaction, timelines of results and productivity, said Donald W. Fisher, Ph.D., AMGA’s president and chief executive officer and American Medical Group Foundation (AMGF) secretary/treasurer.
“The projects honored represent a monumental leap forward in providing our patients the health care they need and want,” he said. “We salute the dedication of the organizations’ leadership and the healthcare providers in improving patient outcomes, patient safety, and efficiency of care; improving preventative and chronic care; and establishing uniform clinical and service measures to provide incentives for excellence.”
In addition to ThedaCare, the AMGA also honored Allina Medical Clinic in Minnesota and Sharp Rees-Stealy Medical Group in San Diego, Calif., with Acclaim Awards.
The American Medical Group Association represents medical groups, including some of the nation's largest, most prestigious medical practices, independent practice associations, and integrated healthcare delivery systems. AMGA improves health care for patients by supporting multispecialty medical groups and other organized systems of care. The members of AMGA deliver health care to approximately 96 million patients in 49 states. Headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, AMGA is the strategic partner for medical groups providing a comprehensive package of benefits, including political advocacy, educational and networking programs and publications, benchmarking data services, and financial and operations assistance.
ThedaCare™ Physicians includes more than 144 employed physicians and 70 nurse practitioners and physician assistants at 22 locations throughout the region and includes specialists in family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, sports medicine, rehabilitation, orthopedics and general surgery. There are also two FastCare clinics inside local stores. According to the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, ThedaCare Physicians is also one of the nation’s leaders in implementing Open Access, same-day appointment services for its patients. ThedaCare Physicians is also a leader in implementing an electronic medical records system, including a patient portal called MyThedaCare, that allows patients to access to their medical information, make appointments, refill prescriptions, and consult their physician appointment from their home computer.
ThedaCare™ (www.thedacare.org) is a community-owned health system consisting of Appleton Medical Center, Theda Clark Medical Center, New London Family Medical Center, Riverside Medical Center in Waupaca, Ingenuity First, ThedaCare Physicians, and other health care services. ThedaCare is the largest employer in Northeast Wisconsin with 5,400 employees.
For more information, media may contact Megan Wilcox (megan.wilcox@thedacare.org), corporate and public relations specialist for ThedaCare, at (920) 830-5847, or pager (920) 554-0730.