Milwaukee, Wis. - Twenty-one Aurora Health Care sites have achieved Level 3 recognition – the highest level available – as a Patient Centered Medical Home from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA). Clinics with Patient Centered Medical Home Status have been recognized for providing coordinated and consistent care to their patients.
Patient centered care is a critical component of an Accountable Care Organization. Aurora joined an Accountable Care Organization readiness collaborative in August 2010. Accountable Care Organizations are health care networks that include primary care, inpatient and outpatient hospital care, home care, pharmacy and other services. This network works together to provide coordinated, high quality and cost effective health care.
Currently, there are 24 Aurora sites that have achieved Patient Center Medical Home recognition within the Aurora system, which was the first health system in Wisconsin to receive the Patient Centered Medical Home recognition and designation.
The following Aurora sites have recently achieved this recognition:
- Aurora Health Center in Union Grove
- Aurora Two Rivers Clinic
- Pediatricians at Aurora Sheboygan Clinic
- Aurora Health Center on Allouez Avenue in Green Bay
- Aurora Health Center on 22nd Avenue in Kenosha
- Aurora Health Center on Mayfair Road in Wauwatosa
- Aurora UW Medical Group Internal Medicine at Aurora Sinai Medical Center
- Aurora UW Medical Group Family Practice at Aurora St. Luke’s Medical Center
- Aurora UW Medical Group Family Medicine at Aurora Sinai Medical Center
- Aurora Health Center in Waterford
- Aurora Wilkinson Medical Clinic in Delafield
- Aurora Health Center on North 92nd Street in Wauwatosa
- Primary care physicians at Aurora BayCare Medical Center
- Aurora Health Center in Peshtigo
- Pediatricians at Aurora Health Center in Oshkosh
- Aurora Medical Group on Doctors Court in Oshkosh
- Aurora Health Center in West Bend
- Aurora Wilkinson Medical Clinic in Dousman
- Aurora Wilkinson Medical Clinic in Wales
- Aurora Burlington Clinic
- Aurora Health Center in River Center
“The patient centered focus demonstrated by these designations has been an integral part of Aurora’s philosophy of care for many years,” said Nick Turkal, MD, president and CEO of Aurora Health Care. “This recognition exemplifies what we’ve been doing all along. And, it reinforces the fact that patients with primary care physicians have better care outcomes.”
The Patient Centered Medical Home recognition acknowledges a health care setting that facilitates partnerships between individual patients, their personal physicians, and when appropriate, the patient’s family.
Specifically, a medical home is a model of care where each patient has an ongoing relationship with a personal physician who leads a team responsible for a patient’s care. The physician-led care team is responsible for providing every patient’s health care needs and coordinating care across the health care system.
A medical home also emphasizes enhanced care through open scheduling, expanded hours and communication between patients, physicians and staff.
“This recognition is another example of our commitment to helping our patients live well and providing them with a better care experience than they can get anywhere else,” said Turkal. “It has always been our priority to keep our patients at the center of everything we do. The Patient Centered Medical Home recognition is an acknowledgement that we are meeting patient expectations and standards.”
The NCQA recognition is built on evidence-based, nationally recognized clinical standards of care. The Patient Centered Medical Home standards emphasize the use of systematic, patient-centered, coordinated care that supports access, communication and patient involvement.
There are very stringent criteria that must be met before a clinic receives the Patient-Centered Medical Home designation from NCQA. Key elements of the evaluation include:
- Written standards for patient access and patient communication
- Use of data to show standards for patient access and communication are met
- Use of paper or electronic charting tools to organize clinical information
- Use of data to identify important diagnoses and conditions in practice
- Adoption and implementation of evidence-based guidelines for three chronic conditions
- Active patient self-management support
- Systematic tracking of test results and identification of abnormal results
- Referral tracking, using a paper or electronic system
- Clinical and/or service performance measurement, by physician or across the practice
- Performance reporting, by physician or across the practice
NCQA is a private, non-profit organization dedicated to improving health care quality. NCQA accredits and certifies a wide range of health care organizations and recognizes physicians in key clinical areas.
Aurora Health Care is a not-for-profit health care provider and a nationally recognized leader in efforts to improve health care quality. Aurora offers services at sites in more than 90 communities throughout eastern Wisconsin and northern Illinois.