Population Health

Baptist Health’s Population Health Service Organization and value-based care initiatives continued their momentum in 2023 in several areas with the overall goals to lower the cost of care, improve health care quality, and reduce health care disparities making great progress.

Here are some of the many highlights from progress made over the past year:

The BH/UAMS Accountable Care Organization that is supported by the PHSO was notified in 2023 that it saved $18 million in 2022 compared to expected expenses. This resulted in a $12.5 million reward from CMS. These funds are being used to reward physicians and get new resources to help provide better care.

All but one of the value based contracts have been redone to include new care management resources that help to better coordinate and manage care for patients with complex needs, reward providers for providing increased value of care to patients, and better collaborate with payers. Also, two new payer contracts have been completed.

The PHSO has taken a lead role in identifying health care disparities in our communities, setting goals to improve those disparities and implementing tactics to reach those goals. The initial goals were centered on building infrastructure to find the disparities. In 2023, two areas of health care outcome disparities have been identified and will be the primary equity focus for 2024.

Physician engagement has been improved with quarterly POD meetings for all primary care physicians. Also, three new associate medical directors have been hired to increase provider engagement. The AMDs are full-time practicing physicians who will support educating physicians about performance opportunities. They will also help identify new opportunities to improve outcomes for patients.

Our independent primary care physicians have new programs to support their work. They have increased access to care management staff, improved support in reporting care gaps to payers by PHSO staff, and have a new incentive program that rewards their office staff for closing care gaps. One of the AMDs is an independent physician.

Structured Integrated Primary Care Pharmacy Program provides expanded coverage for all BH medical group (AHG/BHS) clinics. This program uses pharmacists in improving clinical outcomes for patients with diabetes and hypertension through evidence-based and standardized protocols that are approved by physicians.

Growth continued for our care management work. We now have 30 care management staff, which is up from 18 in 2021. Patient enrollment in care management programs has increased by 63% so far from 2022.