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Georgia Project Quarterly e-Newsletter
Volume 3, No. 2 (June 2009)
Microsoft Be Well Fund Project Winners Recognized
The Be Well Columbus, Georgia Awards Ceremony was held on May 18th at Arnold Magnet Academy, school of the winning homeroom. The Be Well Columbus, Georgia Project is a pilot project instituted through the Muscogee County School District 7th graders and was made possible by a grant the Columbus Research Foundation received from the Microsoft HealthVault Be Well Fund. During a three month period from January 17 until April 24, 2009, participating students were encouraged to increase their physical activity as they took a virtual walk across the United States and to check their daily meal, snack and drink intake.
Mayor Jim Wetherington, Bill Reid of Microsoft Corporation, and Laura Linn of the Center for Health Transformation recognized the students for their accomplishments. Laura then read a letter to the students from CHT Founder Newt Gingrich: “Congratulations to the students, parents and teachers of Muscogee County who, with the help of the Columbus Research Foundation and the generous support of the Microsoft Be Well Fund, created and implemented a school project that will serve as a model for other communities -- not just here in Georgia but throughout the country. Today’s program celebrates an important milestone in an important journey – and we sincerely look forward to continuing to be involved as Columbus, Georgia moves toward being one of the healthiest communities in America.”
Mike Gaymon of the Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce, Valerie Fuller of the MCSD, and Susan Wood of the Muscogee County Council of PTA's then spoke and awards were presented to the students by Royce Ann Adkins and Pam Tinkler of the Columbus Research Foundation.
First place went to Mrs. Ronda Allen's homeroom at Arnold Magnet Academy. The 7th grade students in this homeroom were the first to log enough miles walked to reach Bellevue, Washington, home of the Microsoft Corporation. The 2nd place winner was the homeroom of Mrs. Sara Davis at Marshall Middle School; 3rd place went to the home room of Mrs. Melissa Niemi at Arnold.
The overall goal of the project was to teach and instill healthy lifestyle choices in the area’s adolescents, thereby preventing diabetes and other metabolic disorders associated with being overweight. Over 1000 students participated in the project. It was encouraging to see adolescents engaged in their health. This project serves as a great model for other communities interested in improving the health of their children.
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Diabetes Care Management Saves Lives and Saves Money
François de Brantes, CEO of Bridges to Excellence [BTE] and Jessica DiLorenzo, Operations Director of BTE presented a briefing on June 30th to the CHT Georgia Project BTE Steering Committee. Jessica reviewed metrics of the Georgia BTE Initiative: 216 physicians NCQA recognized for quality diabetes care; 11% of eligible patients are receiving diabetes care from recognized physicians, 2008 Q4 total rewards paid out were $86,000.
François discussed BTE’s focus on decreasing avoidable complications as a strategy to decrease the cost of care. Studies support that quality recognized physicians deliver better outcomes and as a result there are less avoidable complications Data was shown that significant savings could be made in Georgia by decreasing avoidable complications, particularly in patients with diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and congestive heart failure. Recognizing and rewarding physicians for delivering quality care is key to improving care and decreasing cost.
The Steering Committee (comprised of CHT, BTE, employers, insurers, and providers} has been leading the diabetes pay for performance initiative in Georgia. Phase 1 of the project is focused on the BTE Diabetes Care Link Program and comes to a close at the end of this year. Phase 1 was launched in 2005 and has resulted in an increase in the number of physicians in Georgia recognized for quality diabetes care from 5 to 216. Efforts continue throughout the state to further increase this number. Ensuring that diabetes standards of care are delivered is proven to improve the quality of care, decrease complications and save money.
Following the successful completion of Phase 1, plans are underway to move into Phase 2 with goals of expanding physician involvement and increasing the utilization of electronic medical records for data collection. In addition, CHT and BTE will release a paper on the lessons learned and findings at the completion of Phase 1.
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States and Physicians Recognized for e-Prescribing Efforts
At an event at the National Press Club, Surescripts announced that Massachusetts ranks first in the nation when it comes to routing prescriptions electronically. According to the results of an annual nationwide audit of electronic prescriptions routed in 2008, it was determined that prescribers in the Bay State sent more than 6.7 million prescriptions electronically, representing 20.5 percent of all eligible prescriptions in the state. For this accomplishment, Massachusetts was recognized as the top e-prescribing state for the third consecutive year with a Safe-Rx Award presented by CHT member Surescripts.
Surescripts created the Safe-Rx Awards to raise awareness of e-prescribing as a means of enhancing patient safety by providing a more secure, accurate and informed prescribing process. Data from 2008 indicates that Georgia continues to move up nationally in e-prescribing. Georgia is now number 36 in the nation – a steady migration from last in the nation in 2005 to 43rd in 2006 to 38th in 2007. The total volume of e-prescriptions has also jumped impressively with 1.12 million e-prescriptions, up from 326,000 last year.
This year, Surescripts recognized six prescribers nationwide for their leadership in the use of e-prescribing in their medical practice. Surescripts selected Dr. Mark Earhart of Watkinsville, Georgia as a recipient of the Safe-Rx Prescriber of the Year.
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e-Healthy Savannah Project Update
CHT’s e-Healthy Savannah Project is working with all stakeholders in Savannah-Chatham County to increase the adoption of e-prescribing and HIT solutions. CHT Project Director Wayne Oliver spoke to the Georgia Medical Society in late May regarding the physician incentives contained in the stimulus package. Dr. Jim Morrow, a member of the CHT e-prescribing working group and Medical Director for Allscripts, also participated in the meeting with local Savannah physicians. “In order to incorporate advanced technology into medical practices, physicians must take a leadership role in everything from evaluating HIT vendors to rethinking workflow,” said Mr. Oliver. “Hopefully, the Medicare/Medicaid incentives will help push the medical community toward implementing HIT solutions.”
Physicians can begin to earn financial incentives from either Medicare or Medicaid for the meaningful use of electronic medical record in 2011. CHT is working with various stakeholders including state and county medical societies, large medical groups, hospitals and pharmacies to increase the awareness of the importance of moving to an electronic platform. While the second quarter data is not yet available, e-prescribing in Savannah and Chatham County is increasing at a higher rate than the rest of the state. Since launching the e-Healthy Savannah Project in September of 2008, the increase in the total volume of e-prescriptions – both new and refill – has been significant.
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CHT Hosts Commission on Men's Health
CHT recently hosted the Georgia Commission on Men’s Health at the CHT Atlanta office. The Commission on Men’s Health is a catalyst to promote and improve the quality of the physical, social and mental health of men in the State of Georgia. Commission members include Chairman Waldo E. Floyd, Jr., M.D., an orthopedic surgeon from Macon; Patrick Godbey, M.D., a pathologist from Brunswick; Gregg Goggans, D.D.S., an Orthodontist and State Senator from Douglas; William Harper IV, M.D., a urologist from Columbus; Evander Holyfield, Heavyweight Boxing Champion and Entrepreneur from Fairburn; John Maupin, D.D.S., Dean of the Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta; Fran Millar, State Representative and businessman from Dunwoody; Wayne Oliver, a project director with the Center for Health Transformation in Atlanta; Charles Taylor, M.D., a family practice physician from Atlanta; Don Thomas, M.D., a family physician and State Senator from Dalton; and, Richard Smith, a businessman from Columbus.
The Commission held a strategic planning meeting at CHT’s office to address specific policy recommendation for the 2009-2010 year. The Commission on Men’s Health also has conducted significant research into the status of men’s health in the state including:
· Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death among men in Georgia, accounting for 34 percent of all male deaths. Cancer is second, responsible for 23 percent of all male deaths.
· Both lung and prostate cancer death rates for males are 19 percent higher in Georgia than they are nationwide.
· Diabetes is one of the most common chronic diseases. It is the seventh leading cause of death among Georgia males and is responsible for nearly 500 deaths in the state each year.
· In Georgia about 750,000 men - 29 percent of men 18 years and older - have arthritis or a related condition.
· Males account for 84 percent of all people reported with AIDS in Georgia.
· Each year, about 700 males in Georgia die as a result of suicide. Fifty-seven percent of these deaths were among men ages 15 to 44.
· Screenings such as Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) with a digital rectal exam, blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol, in conjunction with clinical examinations and self-testing, can result in early detection of many problems and increase survival rates.
· Educating men, their families and health care providers about the importance of early detection of male health problems can help reduce rates of mortality for male-specific diseases, as well as improve the health of Georgia men.
· Recent studies have shown that regular medical examinations, preventive screenings, regular exercise and healthy eating habits can help save lives.
The Commission on Men’s Health effectively addresses men’s health issues in the State of Georgia. There is a growing body of evidence of the substantial changes in health and well-being for men and, therefore, Georgia is a model for other states to replicate. The Commission will be publishing a report later this year.
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