BMA Clinics Earn Recognition For Patient-Centered Care

ELIZABETHTOWN – All three Bladen Medical Associates clinics have received Level 3 (highest level) designation as patient-centered medical home programs by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA).

The three-year designation is provided through the Physician Practice Connections-Patient Centered Medical Home (PPC-PCMH) program. It recognizes facilities that use evidence-based, patient-centered processes to address a patient’s entire range of healthcare needs, including disease prevention, early detection and care coordination.

The three Bladen Medical Associates clinics recognized are in Elizabethtown, Bladenboro and Dublin. Each demonstrated the ability to promote partnerships between patients and their clinicians, instead of emphasizing episodic office visits, which improves patient care quality and efficiency. 

Cape Fear Valley Receives Heart Surgery’s 

Highest Ranking

FAYETTEVILLE – Cape Fear Valley Heart & Vascular Center has been awarded a “3-star” rating, the highest rating possible, for quality in cardiac surgery by the Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS). The ratings system is the gold standard for rating cardiac surgery programs in the U.S.

Cape Fear Valley received its overall quality rating for surgeries performed between Jan. 1, 2011 and Dec. 31, 2011, the latest data period available.

The STS developed the comprehensive rating system to allow for comparisons regarding the quality of cardiac surgery among US. Hospitals. Just 14 percent of hospitals nationwide received the 3-star rating.

More than 6,400 cardiothoracic surgeons nationwide participate in the ratings program by voluntarily submitting patient outcomes data. The data criteria includes patient survival for at least 30 days after surgery, absence of surgical complications, usage of recommended medications, and employing optimal surgical techniques.

Cape Fear Valley Rewarded For High Quality Patient Care

FAYETTEVILLE – Cape Fear Valley Health System is being rewarded for consistently meeting nationally recognized standards of patient care under an on-going quality study by the federal governement.

The Health Quality Incentive Demonstration (HQID) is a pay-for-performance project sponsored by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Premier healthcare alliance. The project was created to improve patient care quality and to determine if financial incentives are effective at improving patient care quality among hospitals. Just 250 hospitals nationwide are participating in the study.

Cape Fear Valley was named a Top Performer in the Hip and Knee surgery category and received Performance Attainment Awards for scores in Heart Attack, Heart Failure, Pneumonia and Surgical Care. The health system also received a Top Improvement award for Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery (CABG).

For meeting its goals, Cape Fear Valley will receive additional reimbursement from CMS. The federal agency administers several health-related programs and reimburses hospitals for treating those patients.

HQID is the first CMS incentive program of its kind. It measures such things as prescribing a daily aspirin to prevent heart attacks and teaching heart failure patients to weigh themselves daily, which are considered “best practices” to achieve best patient outcomes. Hospitals are rated on whether they performed the measures for every patient at every encounter within five clinical areas.

Now in its fifth year, HQID data shows the project has saved 70,000 lives and $4.5 billion in its first three years due to fewer patient complications, re-admissions and shorter hospital stays. To learn more about the HQID project and Cape Fear Valley’s awards, please visit www.cms.hhs.gov or www.premierinc.com.