TriageLogic’s Nurse Triage On Call™ Services and Call Center Software™ help our Partners Meet ACO Requirements

Eighty-nine new ACOs were announced by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on July 9, resulting in a total of 154 providers who will be participating in the Medicare Shared Savings initiative in 2012. More than 2.4 million beneficiaries are receiving care from the selected providers.  Several of TriageLogic’s current customers have already received ACO grants.  Three of our newest partners this year received the ACO nomination in July 2012.

 

All ACOs that succeed in reducing the costs of care while still providing high quality care may share in the savings to Medicare. To ensure high quality care, ACOs will report their performance on 33 measures related to care coordination and patient safety, the use of appropriate preventive health services, improved care for at-risk populations, and patient and caregiver experiences of care.

 

We all know that to improve the health care that is provided to everyone, we need to be efficient about health care resources. Our nurse-triage line ensures that each person gets the care they need at the right place and at the right time.  TriageLogic’s nurse triage-on-call system can reduce health care costs per patient because it decreases the need for patients to go to the emergency room. This is a win-win situation because patients can avoid unnecessary hospital visits and high costs. 

 

In a recent survey of our patients, we found that 30% of the patients that expected to go to the emergency room did not need to go after being triaged by TriageLogic’s nurse-triage-on-call. More alarmingly, 10% of the patients that did not think they needed to go to the emergency room ended up requiring urgent care. Both of these cases represent huge savings to healthcare and they are a significant improvement in the care of our patients.

 

We are excited to be a part of this initiative, and my experience as a doctor has allowed me to fully understand the needs of patients and how to improve the efficiency of medical care. We will partner with physician practices in reducing health care costs while providing high quality care.