Help Wanted: Accountable Care Organizations Need Trained Care Coordinators

HARRISBURG, Pa., Feb. 19, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Just five years after the enactment of the Affordable Care Act, there are nearly 600 accountable care organizations (ACOs) nationwide, and that number is expected to grow.  Considered one of the critical success factors, 77 percent of ACOs rely on care coordinators who work closely with patients and their health care team to close gaps in care.[i]

Care coordination requires a different set of clinical skills than traditional acute care, and that's why The Geneia Institute and Villanova University have created a course to provide frontline nurses and social workers with the skill sets needed to successfully function within ACOs.

"The early research shows that ACOs are saving money while simultaneously meeting patient quality and satisfaction goals, and we know that skilled care coordinators are an integral part of that success," said Heather Lavoie, President of Geneia.  "The Geneia Institute created this state-of-the-art course to train care coordinators to succeed in all types of accountable care settings."

Coordinating Care in a Fragmented System, which combines in-person classes and online learning, includes lectures, instructional activities, and case studies focused on the core concepts of:

• Financial Considerations of Care Delivery
• Population Health Management Concepts
• Principles to Educate Patients including Adult Learning Principles, Health Literacy, Cultural Competencies
• Patient Engagement through Health Coaching and Motivational Interviewing
• Managing High-Risk Populations, Gaps in Care, Transitions of Care

Coordinating Care in a Fragmented System will meet in-person on the Villanova campus on Saturday, March 8th and Saturday, April 5th, and students will work online for five consecutive weeks beginning the week of March 10th. Students can earn up to 39 contact hours for successfully completing the program.

To learn more about this timely program for nurses and social workers, interested clinicians are invited to join the virtual Open House on February 20^th at 12:30 pm Eastern.  Visit www3.gotomeeting.com/register/160824742 to attend the Open House.  See www1.villanova.edu/villanova/nursing/ce/courses/coord_care.html to register for the course.

ABOUT GENEIA
Geneia is a health care innovations company specializing in the development and deployment of clinical, analytic, and technical solutions for health care.  Our staff has significant experience in all aspects of health care and includes 100 nurses and physicians as well as dietitians, social workers, and health educators.  We develop, acquire, and market leapfrogging technologies to improve the cost of health care, and the health of the people we serve. 

Geneia offers an array of health and wellness programs, including the Worksite Nutrition Culture Assessment which evaluates and makes recommendations about food choices in the workplace.  The Geneia Institute educates clinicians and other health care professionals in population health, care coordination, and other emerging models.  Geneia helps hospitals, physicians, health plans, brokers, employers, and their employees succeed in the post healthcare reform environment.  For more information, visit www.geneia.com.

[i] Leavitt Partners Webinar, November 2012.

SOURCE Geneia