President of BayCare Physician Partners Recognized Nationally

CLEARWATER, Fla., Dec. 19, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- BayCare Physician Partners President Bruce Flareau, MD, was recently honored with the Robert Graham Physician Executive Award from the American Academy of Family Physicians for his leadership in the provision of high quality health care.

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The prestigious national award was created to honor the outstanding executive contribution of one family physician every year. Dr. Flareau's career spans more than two decades in which he has been recognized as a clinician, academician, executive leader and change agent. His passion for health system improvement is evident in the pioneering initiatives he has undertaken at the organizational, regional and statewide levels. 

"The family physician is a critical part of the evolution toward a population health model that focuses on keeping people healthy through early detection and education," said Steve Mason, BayCare Health System president/CEO. "But we need their involvement at the executive level too. We need family physicians to innovate, to help plan care models that are practical and scalable, and to lead others.  Dr. Flareau is a worthy recipient of this distinguished national award because he's done that and more."

Flareau currently serves as executive vice president at BayCare Health System and president of BayCare Physician Partners, one of the first clinically integrated networks in Florida.  He facilitated the strategic planning process with physicians and senior leadership to develop a business plan that includes governance structure, operating principles, financial projections and an implementation timeline.  The growing organization is expected to ultimately include 1,000 Bay area physicians who will coordinate patient care for high quality, cost-efficient care. 

Flareau has spent the last 17 years of his career with BayCare Health System and Morton Plant Mease Health Care focusing on clinical leadership, quality outcomes and improvement, and physician alignment.  During his time at BayCare he oversaw a system wide plan to assist community physicians with the adoption of office electronic medical records (EMR). The system allows more than 400 connected physicians to share records with the full care team when/if their patients are hospitalized, receive lab and imaging results, and view community records that will further their ability to improve community health.

Flareau shared his recognition with colleagues throughout BayCare and beyond.

"This is an exciting time to be in health care and I have had the good fortune to work with professionals who feel passionate about positive change and its potential to improve health and quality of life," said Flareau. "There's no way that a single person or a single organization can do it all, but collaborative efforts can produce exponential levels of innovation and excellence.  That's one of the reasons for my long-time commitment to medical education and clinical integration. It has a multiplier effect. "

In the late 90s Flareau helped develop a Family Medicine Residency program at Morton Plant Mease Health Care in partnership with the University of South Florida.  His work in securing funding and accreditation created the foundation of a program that today boasts graduates who serve as practicing physicians, program faculty, medical directors and department chairs. 

Flareau is a fellow in the American Academy of Family Physicians and the American College of Physician Executives.  That diverse clinical and administrative expertise is evident in his book, Clinical Integration as a Road map to Accountable Care, which is in its second edition.  

Flareau received his medical degree from Upstate Medical Center in Syracuse, New York.  He completed his family residency at Bayfront Medical Center, in St. Petersburg, Florida and fellowship in faculty development from the University of South Florida, Bayfront Medical Center and Duke. He earned his fellowship in residency director development at the National Institute for Program Director Development in Kansas City, Kansas.

About BayCare Health System

BayCare Health System is a leading community-based health system in the Tampa Bay area. Composed of a network of 10 not-for-profit hospitals, outpatient facilities and services such as imaging, lab, behavioral health and home health care, BayCare provides expert medical care throughout a patient's lifetime. With more than 200 access points conveniently located throughout Tampa Bay, BayCare connects patients to a complete range of preventive, diagnostic and treatment services for any health care need. 

BayCare's family of hospitals are: Mease Countryside, Mease Dunedin, Morton Plant, Morton Plant North Bay, St. Anthony's, St. Joseph's, St. Joseph's Children's, St. Joseph's Hospital-North, St. Joseph's Women's, and South Florida Baptist. For more information, visit BayCare on the Web at www.BayCare.org.

SOURCE BayCare Health System