ABQAURP News
November / December 2011
!Accountable Care Organizations—A Conundrum?
Accountable Care Organizations will improve the quality and decrease the cost of health care in the US! Really? While most would agree that the US health care system is broken and financially untenable, does the Accountable Care Organization (ACO) concept, as currently envisioned and however it is implemented, adequately address these concerns?
Accountability has been defined as, “an obligation or willingness….to accept responsibility for one’s actions…” (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/accountability). Where do the regulations hold patients accountable for their health and health outcomes? What incentives, positive or negative, relate to patients’ behaviors that impact their health and the cost of their care? While patients have roles in the structure of the ACO and on the supply side of the ACO model, patients’ responsibilities on the demand and outcomes parts of the equations are much less clear.
Historically, the greatest gains in public health have been systematic interventions that changed what individuals did. Was the unsuccessful effort of Philadelphia’s Mayor Nutter to tax sugared beverages, thus making patients accountable for personal behaviors that adversely impacted their health, wrong? Will measures that require changes in patient behavior or place some consequence on the patient ever be part of health care reform? Can reform succeed without asking more from patients?
Health care costs are greatest at the end of life; however disease and behaviors in early life impact health in later years. Accountable Care Organizations currently target Medicare recipients. Is this where the emphasis should be now if the goal is long-term improvement in the health of our nation?
And so, the question… Are Accountable Care Organizations the solution to our nation’s health care woes or another conundrum since they omit patient accountability and early intervention as core requirements?
Please send inquiries and comments to rwillog@abqaurp.org, please use
Quality Column in the subject line.
We look forward to your participation in this new column.
ABQAURP Events
Save the Dates!
2012 Board Certification Examination Window
Dates to be announced soon
Updated Exam – New Sub-Specialty – Become Certified in 2012!
Live Course – Core Body of Knowledge Exam Preparation
March 3, 2012*
Tampa, FL
Details coming soon!
35th Annual Health Care Quality and Patient Safety Conference
April 21, 2012*
Atlanta, GA
Register online now at www.abqaurp.org or call 800-998-6030, ext. 117
*Conference dates and locations are subject to change.
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Dr. John Tedeschi hopes Hippocrates face imparts wisdom and compassion…
ABQAURP Diplomate, Dr. John Tedeschi runs his hands over the bronze face of Hippocrates, taking in every detail of the sculpture in the lobby of the Dalhousie Medicine New Brunswick building, seeing it there for the first time since he finished creating it last year.
“The face on the sculpture isn’t symmetrical, but is balanced”, Tedeschi said. The left side is more tense and strong, representing wisdom. The right is more relaxed and shows a hint of a smile, representing compassion. “The balance is what makes an excellent doctor,” Tedeschi said, and it is this balance he hopes his sculpture will impart on the students at the medical school.
Read the full story: http://telegraphjournal.canadaeast.com/city/article/1453607
Is Your Medical Education Accredited?
ABQAURP welcomes applications for joint sponsorship of educational activities for continuing education credit. ABQAURP accredits a variety of activities, including:
- Live Activity
- Internet Activity Live
- Enduring Material
- Internet Activity Enduring Material
- Journal-Based CME
- Performance Improvement
ABQAURP is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to sponsor continuing medical education for physicians and is also accredited by the Florida Board of Nursing to sponsor nursing contact hours. As an accredited provider, ABQAURP is here to work with each joint sponsor organization to ensure the accreditation process runs as smoothly as possible. Benefits of working with ABQAURP include: one-on-one assistance, on-site assistance, contact for speakers and commercial supporters, evaluation compilation, one-time mailing list to drive attendance, website placement, and advertising in Patient Safety & Quality Healthcare magazine.
ABQAURP believes that ongoing continuing education in new research, identified problem areas in clinical practice, and areas of interest in the quality assurance, utilization review, risk management, and managed care fields is a worthy endeavor to pursue. Participants improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and quality of health care delivered to the patients to improve the overall clinical outcome. Plus, each activity encourages participants to put into practice knowledge learned and assess the impact. Innovative courses provide important updates and practical tools for all health care professionals. These activities ensure that participating health care professionals receive up-to-date information on the ever-changing health care environment.
For more information, please call Deborah Naser at (800) 998-6030, ext. 118.
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