Taconic Health Information Network and Community Introduces New Learning and Technical Assistance Effort for Providers, ACO Insights

THINC's ACO Insights will offer first free webinar, Building Blocks for the ACO, Feb. 22, 2011

FISHKILL, N.Y., Jan. 25, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today the Taconic Health Information Network and Community (THINC) announced the launch of a series of educational events to explore a new model of care delivery and reimbursement. THINC's ACO Insights, supported by a grant from the New York State Health Foundation, is a training and technical assistance program that will offer physician practices, health plans, hospitals and other health facilities in the Hudson Valley an opportunity to explore the key concepts of and consider the development of accountable care organizations.

THINC is a not-for-profit organization that seeks to convene providers, payers, employers, public health agencies, quality organizations, consumers and local leaders to improve the quality, safety and efficiency of health care for the Hudson Valley community. ACO Insights expands on the organization's leadership in health care transformation and innovative modes of health care delivery.

ACOs emerged in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act as a promising way to slow rising health care costs while improving quality through better care coordination and communication among providers. Beginning in 2012, Medicare will fund pilot projects to test the model for its beneficiaries. Across the nation, provider groups, hospitals and insurance companies are exploring just how to successfully structure these new models.

ACO Insights webinars will feature high-level discussions based on a framework of ACO model components: financial and legal, leadership and operations, quality measures and improvement, and engagement.

"There are a lot of conversations–important conversations–going on about ACOs," said Susan Stuard, THINC's executive director. "Many primary care practices in the Hudson Valley and across the state are small, with 10 or fewer physicians, and at first glance the ACO model is better suited to large practices. THINC is a neutral convener of health care providers in the region, and ACO Insights is a neutral source of information for providers of all sizes to help them understand the ACO concept and make their own assessment of the challenges and opportunities the model presents."

THINC and the Hudson Valley have been on the forefront of innovation in health care delivery, with the highest concentration of top-level medical home recognition in the nation and some 340 active providers connected through electronic health information exchange. ACO Insights will build on this foundation, beginning with a series of free 90-minute webinars that will offer opportunities for registrants to ask questions of nationally-recognized experts. The first two webinars are:

• "Building Blocks for the ACO: A Trajectory Leading to Value."
  • Feb. 22, 2011 from 1:30 to 3 p.m. EST
  • Speakers: Allen Dobson, Jr., M.D., vice president, clinical practice development, Carolina Health Care System and visiting scholar, Engelberg Center at Brookings Institution; and Susan Stuard, executive director, THINC.
• "Quality Measures & Improvement: What, When and How to Measure."
  • April 6, 2011 from 1:30 to 3 p.m. EST
  • Speakers: Heather Grimsley, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' Medicare Demonstrations Program Group, with physician and clinical leaders from CMS's Physician Group Practice Demonstration Program; and Lisa M. Kern, M.D., MPH, associate professor of public health and medicine and deputy director, Health Information Technology Evaluation Collaborative, at Cornell Weill Research.

To find out more about ACO Insights, go to http://thinc.org/aco-insights.html. To register for ACO Insights webinars, go to http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs067/1101292888704/archive/1104293872923.html.

About the Taconic Health Information Network and Community (THINC)

THINC is dedicated to improving the quality, safety and efficiency of health care for the benefit of the people of the Hudson Valley region of New York. The primary purpose of THINC is to advance the use of health IT through the sponsorship of a secure health information exchange network, the adoption and use of interoperable EHRs and the implementation of population health improvement activities. These activities include public health surveillance and reporting, pay for performance, patient centered medical home practice transformation, care coordination activities, public reporting, and other quality improvement initiatives. For more information, go to www.THINC.org. THINC is part of the Hudson Valley Initiative, an effort to revolutionize health care delivery through a shared vision to improve the quality, safety and efficiency of health care in the community. To learn more, go to http://www.hudsonvalleyinitiative.com.

SOURCE THINC