Hudson Valley Physician Leader Underscores Quality Agenda in Panel Focused on Adoption and Meaningful Use of Electronic Health Records

Taconic IPA's A. John Blair III, MD presents Aug. 3 in Boston for World Health Care 8^th Annual Quality Congress

FISHKILL, N.Y., Aug. 2 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- With billions of dollars in Medicare and Medicaid incentive payments on the table, the new rule to ensure physicians and hospitals can demonstrate meaningful use of electronic health records is designed to accelerate their adoption. But how can health care organizations ensure that the quality imperative behind the drive for meaningful use is kept top of mind? That crucial question will be the subject of a presentation by national electronic health information thought leader A. John Blair III, MD, at the World Health Care 8th Annual Health Care Quality Congress in Boston.

Blair is a keynote panelist in a session entitled "Accelerating EHR Adoption to Achieve Meaningful Use: How Will This Impact the Quality Agenda?" on Tuesday, Aug. 3 at 4 p.m. Blair speaks from experience. He is president of Taconic IPA, the nearly 4,000-member-strong physician group at the forefront of transforming health care delivery through meaningful use of technology and pay-for-performance incentives to increase the quality and cost effectiveness of patient care in the Hudson Valley of New York. He is also CEO of MedAllies, a health information service provider company that assists physician adoption of health information technology. In collaboration with the Taconic Health Information Network and Community (THINC), MedAllies has helped nearly 600 physicians in the Hudson Valley implement electronic medical record systems.

The three organizations—Taconic IPA, MedAllies and THINC—work synergistically as the Hudson Valley Initiative, whose goal is to revolutionize health care delivery through a shared vision to improve the quality, safety and efficiency of health care in the community. In 2009, an innovative quality initiative in the Hudson Valley resulted in National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) Recognition of 51 primary care practice sites as Level 3 patient-centered medical homes, the highest level achievable. This groundbreaking accomplishment was achieved by 236 physicians within 11 primary care practice and represents 44 percent of total Level 3 clinicians in New York, and nearly 10 percent of all practices at this level across the country.

In his presentation, Blair notes that electronic health information tools must follow an evolutionary path, taking structured steps that lead to practice transformation. Meaningful use of electronic health records must also incorporate reporting and transparency mechanisms to ensure that new financial models can be adopted; these models emphasize quality of care rather than numbers of patient visits and procedures. Only by aligning payment incentives will health care be transformed to a truly coordinated, patient-centered system of care.

Blair's session will be held Aug. 3 at 4 p.m. Blair's will be joined on the panel by Karen M. Bell, MD, MMS, chair of the Certification Commission for Health Information Technology.  For more information or to register for the meeting, click here. To read more about the 2009 PCMH transformation project, see the issue brief, "A Revolution in Collaboration: The Hudson Valley Initiative" here.

About the Hudson Valley Initiative

The Hudson Valley Initiative is an effort among three organizations—Taconic IPA, Taconic Health Information Network and Community and MedAllies—to revolutionize health care delivery through a shared vision to improve the quality, safety and efficiency of health care in the community. These three organizations leverage health information technology, physician practice transformation and value-based purchasing in pursuit of care delivery that is patient-centered, coordinated, accessible, high quality, and efficiently delivered through sustainable financial models. To learn more, go to http://www.hudsonvalleyinitiative.com.

SOURCE Hudson Valley Initiative