Developing community relationships was a foundational step to improving safety-net care in New Orleans, according to a case study of the Crescent City Beacon Community.
The study, published at eGEMs, highlights how New Orleans incorporated health IT during the three-year period of its $13.5 million Beacon grant. Its authors conclude that governance infrastructure, partnership building and development of a learning community must be priorities in any HIT effort.
Hurricane Katrina destroyed much of the city's infrastructure, including its healthcare system, in 2005. A $100 million Primary Care Access and Stabilization Grant in 2007 allowed a move away from a centralized public hospital system for safety-net care to a clinic-based model.
The Beacon grant followed, with the mission to build and strengthen local HIT health systems and test approaches to improve population health and lower health care costs, according to the case study.
Central to the process was adopting a conceptual framework showing how actions and policies in one part of the healthcare delivery system impacted the others. It provided a common vision among the partners about how to go about improving care. Strong governance also was key to turning that vision into reality, starting with 16 health operators serving the safety-net population who had a history of working together, according to the study.
That governance proved essential, such as when disagreement over data-sharing held up the project for a year. A decision to move forward with those willing to share data and illustrate its value helped keep the project--which focused on chronic care management (CCM), transitions of care, and consumer engagement through innovative use of information technologies--on track.
For patient engagement, the community successfully tested txt4health, a text message-based health information service delivering information about Type 2 diabetes. A consumer advisory group helped develop messages and social campaigns to publicize the program and more than 1,000 people enrolled in the first 12 months.
A second case study at eGEMs highlights the Colorado Beacon Consortium's quality improvement efforts, concluding that primary care practices need continuing help to translate federal requirements and implement technology effectively.
To learn more:
- read the case study (.pdf)