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It’s Time to Integrate ACOs and Public Health, Says IOM
Thursday, March 29, 2012 |
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Accountable care organizations (ACOs) and medical homes should consider integrating with public health professionals to meet a shared goal of ensuring population health, according to a new report from the Institute of Medicine (IOM). As more primary care practices move toward the patient-centered medical home model, public health departments could work with these practices and spread the benefits of care coordination to the community, the IOM committee said. As ACOs begin operating, they should reach out to health departments to forge links to community programs and public health services. The ACA authorizes the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to launch several new programs. Promising opportunities include encouraging hospitals to treat primary care and community health as priorities as they strive to earn federal tax-exempt status through demonstrated community benefits, and fostering collaboration among health departments and community health centers to improve the provision of preventive clinical services to Medicaid recipients.
Training primary care and public health professionals in aspects of each other's fields will also help promote a more integrated work force, the report says. HRSA should use its Title VII and VIII primary care training programs to support curriculum development and training opportunities that involve aspects of public health, and CDC's Epidemic Intelligence Service officers could assist HRSA-supported community health centers in using public health data to guide the care they provide. |
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Courtesy of: HFMA News |
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