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Healthcare Journal of new orleans
I
JAN / FEB 2015
47
Cindy Munn
Chief Executive Officer
Louisiana Health Care Quality Forum
available to help them take an active role in
their health care.
How We Compare
In EHR adoption, for example, according to
a six-month old status report from the Of-
fice of the National Coordinator for Health IT
(ONC), we are at 49.2 percent in non-federal
acute care hospitals – a significant increase
over years past. And our REC has consistent-
ly ranked among the top 10 in the nation in
helping providers meaningfully use EHRs.
Currently, the LHITResource Center is ranked
seventh of the country’s 62 RECs.
LaHIE, since its beginning,
has focused on long-
term sustainability,
thus avoiding the
pitfall of federal
funding dependence that has befallen HIEs
in other states. LaHIE’s continued growth and
expansion of services and features positions
it among the nation’s more advanced HIEs
and one of the few prepared for the current
‘Big Data Revolution.’
In addition, Louisiana is one of few states
with the foresight to develop and launch an
integrated strategy that leverages health IT
adoption topower care transformation among
health care providers. This unique business
model incorporates the services of the LHIT
Resource Center with a focus on removing
technology barriers that may impede PCMH
transformation.The combination of health IT
implementation assistance and PCMH con-
sulting services is designed to drive quality
improvements that will be sustainable well
beyond the federal Meaningful Use program.
The focus on patient and consumer en-
gagement in health care is yet another item
that sets Louisiana apart. While many states
still struggle to develop strategies to be-
gin such outreach, we have launched a
statewide campaign to educate patients
about health IT and how it can be used
to manage and improve their health.
This campaign is uniquely designed to
supplement direct outreach and educa-
tion with indirect outreach by providing
innovative patient-facing tools and resourc-
es to those health care providers, facilities,
and organizations currently working with
the REC, LaHIE, and/or PCMH initiatives.
Over the last several years, these
initiatives have combined and over-
lapped, and in time, they have the po-
tential to improve our state’s health
and health care scores. The combined
successes of these efforts thus far are a
testament to Louisiana’s commitment to
driving true improvements in health care
quality, outcomes, and costs for its residents.
For Louisiana, the move away from the
wrong end of the health care scale has
begun.
n
working with 126 health care providers and
six specialty practices in achieving PCMH
recognition from the National Committee
for Quality Assurance (NCQA) or the Joint
Commission. In addition, a large group of
health care providers are enrolled and are
projected to begin the PCMH transformation
process in the spring.
The Quality Forum, in collaboration with
stakeholders across the health care spec-
trum, has also begun taking these efforts to
the residents of Louisiana with an innovative
consumer and patient engagement strategy.
Utilizing partnerships with community and
consumer organizations, new and tradition-
al media platforms, and virtual and onsite
events, the Quality Forum is working
to educate the state’s health care con-
sumers about the tools and resources
graphic courtesy of Louisiana
Health care Quality Forum