"State of Primary Care in RI" Panel Discussion
Details:
In partnership with the Executive Office of Health and Human Services and the Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner, CTC hosted a morning panel discussion on the "State of Primary Care in R.I." on March 29.
The event drew more than 170 registered attendees, with panelists including Marie Ganim, PhD, Commissioner, Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner; Patrick Tigue, Medicaid Director, Executive Office of Health and Human Services; Tom Bledsoe, MD, Brown Medicine; Matthew Roman, LICSW, MBA, Chief Operating Officer, Thundermist; Pano Yeracaris, MD, MPH, Chief Clinical Strategist, CTC (panel facilitator); and Debra Hurwitz, MBA, BSN, RN, Executive Director, CTC (opening remarks).
"Rhode Island is one of the top states in the country in access to patient-centered medical homes, and we've seen first-hand how supporting and improving primary care infrastructure helps control costs," said Commissioner Ganim. "The strength of Rhode Island's primary care today is a result of sustained investment under OHIC's Affordability Standards, which have directed an additional $87 million into primary care since 2010."
A recent report by the Commonwealth Fund ranked Rhode Island forth in the nation on more than 40 measures of health system performance and population health - an indicator that many of the programs in place are working.
"As we work to further transform the Medicaid Program into a catalyst for payment reform and delivery system reform in Rhode Island, ensuring access to high-quality primary care will remain a core objective and foundation of our efforts," said Director Tigue.
The facilitated panel discussion focused on where R.I. is progressing in primary care and what challenges still exist - from ways primary care teams are working to combat the opioid crisis to new programs that support development of the healthcare workforce.
"From behavioral health and substance use disorder services made available right in the primary care office setting, to a program supporting community-based services that help address health-impacting factors like housing, food-insecurity, and transportation, our reform efforts are working to better support the overall care Rhode Islanders," said Executive Director Hurwitz. "Our work is far from over, but we know we're making progress."
Innovations led by CTC - such as integrated behavioral health and geographic community health teams - were recognized by healthcare leaders as invaluable to improving the health and wellbeing of Rhode Islanders. Workforce training in these new models, increasing administrative burden, attraction of primary care clinicians, and primary care / specialist collaboration were recognized as ongoing challenges that CTC's collaborative work and the greater healthcare community are working to address.
Debra Hurwitz's presentation can be found here. Commissioner Ganim's slides can be found here.
Date:
Location:
"The State of Primary Care
in Rhode Island"
A Facilitated Panel Discussion with RI Healthcare Leaders
Thursday, March 29, 2018
7:30am-9:30am
Providence Marriott
(1 Orms Street, Providence)
A recent Commonwealth Fund report ranked Rhode Island 4th in the nation on 40 measures of population health -- but we know there's still more work to do.
Sponsored by the Executive Office of Health and Human Services and the Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner, healthcare leaders -- with the Care Transformation Collaborative of RI community -- will explore key advancements our state has made in primary care, and ways we can continue to advance our system.
From workforce development to better access to behavioral health support, we are changing the way Rhode Islanders stay well, and must continue advancing our efforts. Panelists include:
Marie Ganim, Commissioner, Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner
Patrick Tigue, Medicaid Director, Executive Office of Health and Human Services
Tom Bledsoe, MD, University Medicine
Matthew Roman, Chief Operating Officer, Thundermist
Pano Yeracaris, MD, MPH, CTC (Panel Facilitator)
Opening remarks will be by Debra Hurwitz, MBA, BSN RN, Executive Director, CTC.
This high-level discussion will be relevant to lawmakers interested in state healthcare policies, healthcare leaders, and outside organizations interested in the way advanced primary care is supporting an improved healthcare system.
Registration for this event is required, please register here by March 22.
Our Mission
The mission of CTC-RI is to support the continuing transformation of primary care in Rhode Island as the foundation of an ever-improving integrated, accessible, affordable, and equitable health care system. CTC-RI brings together critical stakeholders to implement, evaluate and spread effective multi-payer models to deliver, pay for and sustain high-quality, comprehensive, accountable primary care.