Meritage Medical Network
NOVATO, CA (PRWEB) September 12, 2014
Meritage Medical Network has been selected to participate in a Peri-Operative Surgical Home learning collaborative – a cutting edge, national program that improves patient outcomes and experience before, during, and after surgery. Meritage ACO will be piloting this program in partnership with Marin General Hospital and two physician champions: Anesthesiologist Keith Chamberlin, MD, MBA and General/Colorectal Surgeon, Sabrina Kidd, MD.
Much like a Patient Centered Medical Home, which is designed around coordination of medical care for the patient (mainly by the primary care physician), the Peri-Operative Surgical Home is designed around coordination of care for the patient (mainly by the anesthesiologist) around a surgical procedure. More coordinated care means higher quality care – when physicians are working together to ensure that all patients are getting the appropriate components of care, at optimal timing and intervals, they can improve the efficiency of the care, avoid duplication of services, and enhance the patient experience.
According to the ASA, “Currently, preoperative, intraoperative, postoperative and post-discharge are treated as discrete episodes of care. In many instances, care is neither integrated nor coordinated between clinical microsystems, potentially compromising quality and safety for the patient.” A few of the other 40 organizations participating in the learning collaborative include Mayo Clinic, Stanford, UCSF, and UCLA.
In addition to the coordination of care by the anesthesiologist, an important component of this project is the use of enhanced recovery protocols. “Enhanced Recovery Protocols, largely developed by colorectal surgeons, have improved outcomes and decreased hospital length of stays for patients undergoing colectomies,” says Dr. Kidd. “Combining this knowledge with an integrated anesthesiology care plan which also encompasses pre and post hospital care, and the latest laparoscopic surgical techniques is an exciting concept that is sure to enhance patient outcomes and satisfaction while hopefully decreasing cost through the optimization of available resources and adherence to best practice recommendations.”
Dr. Chamberlin, also the President and Board Chair of Meritage ACO, attended the collaborative kick off on July 25 and 26th in Chicago, Illinois. Dr. Chamberlin says: “I found it exciting and valuable to meet with other health care leaders across the country to start working on this program. Our collective efforts are going to produce a unique surgical system that empowers patients, shortens their hospital stay, and improves their post discharge course.”
MERITAGE MEDICAL NETWORK
Meritage Medical Network is a health care network that represents local physician members. In addition to contracting with HMO insurance plans for over 600 private practice physicians, the Meritage Medical Network offers services to physicians and patients including providing Continuing Medical Education classes, Patient Education classes, clinical management programs, and help with adoption of Electronic Health Records. The Meritage Medical Network is made up of expert medical and administrative staff dedicated to ensuring that patients receive the highest quality health care available in Marin County and Sonoma.
Meritage ACO is a subsidiary company of Meritage Medical Network. Designated by CMS as an Shared Savings Accountable Care Organization in January of 2013, Meritage ACO works to improve the care of the Medicare Beneficiaries cared for by our member physicians, largely by coordinating care so that it is both high-quality and efficient. For more information, visit our website at http://www.meritagemed.com and follow us on Facebook.
THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF ANESTHESIOLOGISTS
Founded in 1905, the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) is an educational, research and scientific society with more than 52,000 members organized to raise and maintain the standards of the medical practice of anesthesiology. ASA is committed to ensuring that physician anesthesiologists evaluate and supervise the medical care of patients before, during, and after surgery to provide the highest quality and safest care that every patient deserves. For more information on the field of anesthesiology, visit the American Society of Anesthesiologists online at asahq.org. To learn more about the role physician anesthesiologists play in ensuring patient safety, visit asahq.org/WhenSecondsCount. Join the ANESTHESIOLOGYTM 2014 social conversation today. Like ASA on Facebook, follow ASALifeline on Twitter and use the hashtag #ANES2014.