Prevention - Physician Offices

Under the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) 9th Scope of Work, quality improvement organizations such as HSAG will focus their prevention activities on improving the quality and frequency of preventive health care services in order to optimize beneficiary quality of life and health care efficiencies.

HSAG will work with physician offices that have an existing electronic health record (EHR) to implement care management processes to improve the rate of patients who receive breast and colorectal cancer (CRC) screenings and influenza and pneumococcal immunizations.

Breast and Colorectal Cancer Screenings:
The United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) found fair evidence that breast cancer screening (mammography) and CRC screening reduce mortality among Medicare beneficiaries. HSAG will educate participating physician practices on using their EHRs to improve breast cancer and CRC screening rates.

With HSAG's assistance, these physician groups will implement care management processes that focus on improving these screening rates and report these measures to CMS.

Immunizations:
Influenza and pneumococcal immunization rates among adults 65 years of age and older remain well below the Healthy People 2010 objective of 90 percent. There is a need for more effective strategies for delivering vaccines to high-risk individuals, medical providers, and household contacts. Interventions that support health information technology have the potential to improve these immunization rates.

HSAG will work with participating physician practices throughout Arizona who use EHRs to improve influenza and pneumococcal immunization rates. With HSAG's assistance, these physician groups will implement care management processes that focus on these clinical measures.

HSAG will educate participating physician practices on using their EHRs to improve immunization rates. Each participating physician practice will use its EHR to report influenza and pneumococcal immunization rates directly to CMS.

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