News from your Primary Care Team and eBrightHealth ACO
at home!
SPRING HAS SPRUNG!
Get ready for wellness
5WAYS A CARE COORDINATOR HELPS YOU STAY ON YOUR GAME
Care
Coordinators help
keep care plans on track
If you’re trying to juggle the many moving pieces of your own care plan, or if you are helping a spouse, relative or neighbor manage a chronic condition or recover from injury or illness, a Care Coordinator just may turn out to be your new best friend. Care Coordinators are important members of your Primary Care Team. From scheduling follow-up visits, to answering questions about medication side effects, to connecting you with community services to help you stick with your care plan, Care Coordinators partner with your doctor/clinician to help you organize every step of your care plan. They keep your entire care team—including specialists, community providers, and hospital, home care and skilled nursing staff—up-to-date about your health. Most importantly, they take the time to make sure that you really understand your condition(s) and care plan, and guide you through steps you can do at home to Be Well. Stay Well.
THINK OF YOUR CARE COORDINATOR AS BOTH CHEERLEADER AND COACH. Together, you’ll make an awesome team working toward ways to help you win at wellness!
1
SPRING 2023
out our new insert inside!
Check
A trusted partner
Helping you stay on top of it all
Having trouble finding a specialist or scheduling a follow-up visit with one of your doctors/clinicians?
Your Care Coordinator can help! Have a question about one of your prescription medications?
Ask your Care Coordinator! Expecting imaging or lab results and want to make sure reports get to each doctor/ clinician involved in your care? You guessed it … your Care Coordinator can help with that, too!
A Care Coordinator, usually a registered nurse or licensed social worker, partners with you and your health care team to help organize every aspect of your care plan, especially if you are being treated for one or more chronic conditions, such as congestive heart failure, COPD, diabetes or high blood pressure.
You may also hear from your Care Coordinator when it’s time to schedule your Annual Wellness Visit or recommended screenings, such as a colonoscopy or mammogram, or if your doctor/clinician wants to tweak your care plan a bit because of changes in your blood pressure, A1-C level or weight. There is no cost to you to work with a Care Coordinator. But there sure are lots of benefits!
Ready to start thinking about Advance Care Planning, or need information about palliative care, hospice, assisted living options or getting more help in the home? Your Care Coordinator can connect you with resources to help.
5 ways a Care Coordinator can help you stay on your
game
You have questions about a new medication.
You’ve noticed changes in your appetite, energy level or sleep patterns.
You need help scheduling a visit with a specialist or a follow-up appointment.
You need help understanding a test result.
You’re going through changes at home, such as illness of a spouse or financial worries.
2
▽
1 2 3 4 5
Your Care Coordinator is here to
Listen and get to know how your health care team can best meet your unique needs.
Teach you about your chronic condition(s), your care plan and steps you need to take at home to Be Well. Stay Well.
Guide you through the health care system, from scheduling and tracking appointments to helping you understand test results and insurance coverage.
Review your medications to make sure you are taking them as prescribed and look out for side effects or potential interactions.
Advocate for you by making sure all of your doctors/ clinicians have the same information, are talking to one another and respecting your wishes.
Connect you to community resources for needed support.
How a Care Coordinator made a difference
Patient’s A1-C blood sugar levels were too high. (rose from 7.5 to 10.5)
Care Coordinator discovered that the patient was having trouble reading the screen on her glucose monitor.
Care Coordinator alerted the patient’s health care team, who came up with a new care plan that was easier for the patient to follow.
Care Coordinator arranged for a nurse to visit the patient at home to teach her how to count dial clicks on a new glucose monitoring sensor and use a magnifying reader to dial the appropriate dose of insulin.
Care Coordinator set up biweekly telephone check-ins to monitor the patient’s A1-C readings.
Success!
The personalized care plan helped lower this patient’s A1-C readings to 7.1 in just four months, and the Care Coordinator continues to help her make even more progress.
Chronic conditions?
CareVio® has you covered!
From tracking down lab work, to support with life’s challenges that get in the way of your good health, to making sure that every member of your health care team is up-todate with how you’re doing, CareVio is another great benefit of your Primary Care Team’s partnership with eBrightHealth ACO.
Don’t go it alone!
When you get a call from 302-320-5600, be sure to pick up.
It’s your CareVio Care Coordinator, calling with helpful information. Have questions? Call this same number.
*CareVio is ChristianaCare’s care coordination service. Your doctor/clinician may work with a Care Coordinator from Bayhealth or a community practice, or even have their own Care Coordinator on staff. They all do the same important job, so be sure to take advantage of this value-added service.
3
A patient’s story
“If you take the “i” out of illness and add “we,” you end up with wellness.”
— UNKNOWN
Care Coordinators make the difference! Find all the ways your Care Coordinator helps you get all of the support you need to Be Well. Stay Well.
Have you scheduled your Annual Wellness Visit yet for 2023?
It takes a village to BeWell.StayWell.
The best care plan in the world won’t work if life challenges keep you from following your doctor’s or clinician’s instructions. Are you struggling with anxiety or depression that makes it hard to leave the house? Have you missed medical appointments because you couldn’t find a ride? Do money worries make you choose between filling prescriptions or buying groceries? Your Care Coordinator can connect you with community resources that can help.
Want to know more about ACOs?
Or if this is your first issue of Be Well. Stay Well. At Home, spring on over to eBrightHealthACO.org to learn more about the benefits of being part of an ACO or email us at info@ebhaco.org.
This important yearly visit with your Primary Care Team lets you create a personalized, ongoing and informed wellness prevention plan and make sure your health record is complete and up-to-date.
CaregiverCorner
Make time for yourself!
If you are the caregiver for a friend or loved one, it’s important to take care of yourself, too. Choose healthy foods, make sleep a priority, exercise and spend a few minutes each day doing something you look forward to. Keep track of your own appointments and schedule down time in our 2023 Health & Wellness Planner (see back cover for how to get your own free copy).
4 K S R R C A R E G I V E R S M P C D R A S W W S R M H Y O X O I T R U M W U O Q E J L Q W E I E W R L R C A V P H Y D S N T D Z Y E E L C D P D A Q C A P X X W T T T Y A S T T L M S I M D E O U O R M Q N Y Q I U E L G A L A W C Z C V T R C Z A E W J G N H L A L C N E W A R D P T A M H M P M S J U P R R K U E S D T A E R C N N T A A L H G I U E R N D S T Z I R L E A L N I F M G E T T W E E O E S H W O H C V N I A I D O P F N Y O H F I U F R C N L I O O I N B M R T I C N L C E T Q H E P S G B P V A N S W A O I O W L K R N P H Q X A E P X W Y U G A O G O R N O Z C E R J C T A A T H G L F R S Q R I C F F V D V R Z E I N F O R M A T I O N V K N H G M U E T X Z Y D G P Y W K R O W M A E T G K J Q R G E C R U O S E R P R O A C T I V E B Y Q P F Advocate Appointments Caregiver Champion Cheerleader Continuity Coordinate Educate Followup Imaging Information Labwork Medications Navigate Prevention Proactive Referrals Resource Screenings Seamless Support Teamwork Wellness
WORD FIND
Adding just 20 more minutes a day of physical activity such as walking or swimming can significantly lower your risk of being hospitalized for serious medical conditions, including diabetes, gallbladder disease, blood clots and urinary tract infections.
What’s cooking
Spring Frittata with Lemony Arugula
INGREDIENTS
SERVES 6
SERVING SIZE
1 WEDGE
6 eggs, or equivalent egg substitute
1/2 cup 2% milk
2 teaspoons olive oil
8 oz. cremini mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
2 small leeks, white and light green part only, well-rinsed and sliced into thin half moons (about 1 cup)
DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 375°.
2. Whisk eggs and milk until completely combined.
3. In a 10” pan, heat olive oil and cook sliced mushrooms on stove, without stirring, for 5 minutes. Stir, sprinkle with 1/8 tsp. of salt and a few grinds of pepper and cook until well-browned (3-5 min.), stirring as needed. Set mushrooms aside.
4. Add leeks and asparagus to the hot pan and cook for 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook for an additional 2 minutes or until leeks are soft and asparagus is just tender. Season with 1/8 tsp. salt and a few grinds of pepper.
The research published in JAMA Network Open doesn’t specify whether the additional 20 minutes need to happen all at once or can be broken up into smaller chunks of activity, but the real takeaway is to move more if you are able.
Smart Tip
If you are able, park a bit farther away and take the stairs instead of waiting for the elevator.
1/2 bunch of thin asparagus, cut into bite-sized pieces, about 1/2 lb
2-3 cloves of garlic
2 oz. goat cheese
1 cup arugula
1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Freshly ground black pepper
5. Stir mushrooms into the asparagus mixture. Pour egg mixture over vegetables and stir.
6. Cook frittata for 2 minutes, without stirring, then place pan in the oven. Cook for 15 minutes or until the eggs are just set. Let rest for 5 minutes before removing from the pan.
7. Toss arugula with lemon juice. Crumble goat cheese over the frittata and top with lemony arugula, leaving any remaining lemon juice behind. Serve hot, room temperature or even cold.
CHEF’S TIP
To reduce cholesterol, replace a few of the whole eggs with the equivalent amount of egg whites, or replace 1/4 cup of an egg substitute like Egg Beaters® for each whole egg.
NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION: SERVING SIZE: 1 WEDGE CALORIES 148; TOTAL FAT 9G; SATURATED FAT 3G; SODIUM 185MG; MONOUNSATURATED FAT 3G; POLYUNSATURATED FAT 1G; TRANS FAT 0G; CHOLESTEROL 196MG; POTASSIUM 360MG; TOTAL CARBOHYDRATE 8G; DIETARY FIBER 1G; SUGARS 3G; PROTEIN 10G
Thank you to eBrightHealth ACO partner ChristianaCare for this recipe. To find more, visit our website at eBrightHealthACO.org.
5
The best 20 minutes of your day
EXERCISE IS KEY
MAKES GREAT LEFTOVERS!
4000 Nexus Drive, Suite NW2 Wilmington, DE 19803
Time to SPRING into coordinated care
Now you’re talking...
Beneficiary to Beneficiary
Be one of the first 50 readers to tell us what you think of our newsletter—or what you would like to read about in a future issue — and Evelyn Hayes, your eBrightHealth ACO beneficiary representative, will send you our 2023 Health & Wellness Planner full of monthly tips to help you keep track of appointments, screenings and other to-dos for a well-coordinated year.
Evelyn would also love to hear how a Care Coordinator has helped you keep your care plan on track. Email her at info@ebhaco.org and she’ll send you a pill cutter as a thank you.
2023
Don’t forget to include your name and mailing address! Health & Wellness Planner
This newsletter is from your Primary Care Team and these partners that make up eBrightHealth ACO. Be sure to stay in touch with your Primary Care Team throughout the year to help you Be Well. Stay Well.
PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID WILMINGTON DE PERMIT NO. 357
23ACO58
Visit eBrightHealthACO.org
learn
Medicare information: 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227); TTY: 1-877-486-2048 or medicare.gov Dover Family Physicians; Curtis A. Smith, D.O.; Westside Family Healthcare
to
about accountable care organizations.
SPRING HAS SPRUNG
The days are growing longer, night breezes are blowing warmer and all of nature is new again. What better time of year to dust off your walking shoes and gardening gloves and spring into ways to Be Well. Stay Well.
Get out and enjoy the sunshine!
Sunlight leads to stronger bones, better moods, clearer thinking, and may even help with joint mobility. Don’t forget your sunscreen, though, and if you suffer from seasonal allergies, remember that pollen counts are usually lowest in the mornings.
Recharge your batteries!
Enjoy healthy spring foods like tender asparagus, strawberries and new potatoes; do gentle stretches; and get a good night’s sleep. Be sure to change the battery in your smoke detectors, too, if you didn’t do it when you changed the clocks for daylight saving time.
Water is for gardens, and bodies,
too!
Aim for 6-8 glasses a day, more when you exercise. One easy way to know if you’re staying hydrated: your urine should be clear to pale yellow. If you feel even a little bit thirsty, your body is telling you it needs more water.
Keep it cool!
Fresh air and birds chirping can boost your mood, lower your heart rate, improve your energy level and even help with digestion. Dress in layers to adjust to changing temperatures, and make sure your fan or air conditioner is ready when the heat starts to rise.
Brush up on oral health!
You know the drill… brush and floss twice daily and visit your dentist regularly. Try an electric or batterypowered toothbrush or water flosser for an extra layer of clean. If you struggle with dry mouth, sugar-free citrus, cinnamon or mint candies or gum may help. Some medicines can cause dry mouth, too, so talk to your doctor or dentist. Wake up refreshed!
Aim for 7-9 hours of sleep each night. For the best rest, go to bed and wake up at the same time each day in a dark, quiet, cool room and limit naps to one short siesta each day. A sound machine, sleep mask or ear plugs may help bring on the ZZZs.
“Spring is nature’s way of saying ‘Let’s party!’”
— ROBIN WILLIAMS
Rx:
My List of Medications
This medication chart is a great tool to help you keep track of everything you are taking, including prescriptions, vitamins, pain relievers and more. Fill it out completely and bring it to all medical visits to keep your health care team up-to-date on everything you are taking. Tell your health care team if the cost of medicine keeps you from taking it as prescribed.
My Medication
When Do I Take It?
What Do I Use It For?
How Much Do I Take? To print this list, visit eBrightHealthACO.org
Be sure to include ALL prescription drugs, over-the-counter drugs, vitamins and supplements
Example: ABC Medication – XX mg XX pills bedtime Helps XYZ body part 4.
(Use a pencil so it is easy to change dosages or remove items)
23ACO58
1. 2. 3. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19.
