Are ACOs Ready to be Accountable for Medication Use?

Accountable care organizations (ACOs) have the potential to lower costs and improve quality through incentives and coordinated care. However, the design brings with it many new challenges. One such challenge is the optimal use of pharmaceuticals.

An Adult Immunization Best Practices Learning Collaborative: Impact, Scale Up, and Spread.

The research objective was to rapidly scale up and spread a proven learning collaborative approach (intervention) for adult vaccination rates for influenza and pneumococcal disease from 7 to 39 US health care organizations and to examine improvement in adult immunization rates after scale-up. Comparative analyses were conducted between intervention and nonintervention propensity score-matched providers on vaccination rates using a difference-in-differences approach. Qualitative data, collected during site visits and in-person and virtual meetings, were used to enhance understanding of quantitative results.

Impact of a Learning Collaborative Approach on Influenza and Pneumococcal Immunization Rates in US Adults: A Mixed Methods Approach.

The objective of this research was to test the impact of a learning collaborative model (intervention) on adult vaccination rates for influenza and pneumococcal disease. A mixed methods approach was used to identify changes in adult vaccination rates over time and organizational factors contributing to successful programs. Provider-level propensity scores were used to match intervention to non-intervention providers to control for inherent selection bias of participating organizations.

Improving Blood Pressure Control Using Smart Technology.

Background: The authors sought to determine if wireless oscillometric home blood pressure monitoring (HBPM) that integrates with smartphone technology improves blood pressure (BP) control among patients with new or existing uncontrolled hypertension (HTN).

Methods: A prospective observational cohort study monitored BP control before and after an educational intervention and introduction to HBPM. Patients in the intervention group were instructed to track their BP using a smartphone device three to seven times per week.

The Central Role of Physician Leadership for Driving Change in Value-Based Care Environments.

Background: In 2013, it was reported that about 1 of every 3 U.S. adults has hypertension.

Solutions for filling gaps in accountable care measure sets.

Objectives: A primary objective of accountable care is to support providers in reforming care to improve outcomes and lower costs. Gaps in accountable care measure sets may cause missed opportunities for improvement and missed signals of problems in care. Measures to balance financial incentives may be particularly important for high-cost conditions or specialty treatments.

Best practices: improving patient outcomes and costs in an ACO through comprehensive medication therapy management.

Background: One of the most important and often overlooked challenges for accountable care organizations (ACOs) is ensuring the optimal use of pharmaceuticals, which can be accomplished by utilizing pharmacists' skillsets and leveraging their full clinical expertise. Developing capabilities that support, monitor, and ensure appropriate medication use, efficacy, and safety is critical to achieving optimal patient outcomes and, ultimately, to an ACO's success. The program described in this article highlights the best practices of Fairview Pharmacy Services' Medication Therapy Management (MTM) program with additional thoughts and considerations on this and similar MTM programs provided by The Working Group on Optimizing Medication Therapy in Value-Based Healthcare.

Best Practices: Improving Patient Outcomes and Costs in an ACO Through Comprehensive Medication Therapy Management.

Background: One of the most important and often overlooked challenges for accountable care organizations (ACOs) is ensuring the optimal use of pharmaceuticals, which can be accomplished by utilizing pharmacists' skillsets and leveraging their full clinical expertise. Developing capabilities that support, monitor, and ensure appropriate medication use, efficacy, and safety is critical to achieving optimal patient outcomes and, ultimately, to an ACO's success. The program described in this article highlights the best practices of Fairview Pharmacy Services' Medication Therapy Management (MTM) program with additional thoughts and considerations on this and similar MTM programs provided by The Working Group on Optimizing Medication Therapy in Value-Based Healthcare.

Are ACOs ready to be accountable for medication use?

Background: Accountable care organizations (ACOs) have the potential to lower costs and improve quality through incentives and coordinated care. However, the design brings with it many new challenges. One such challenge is the optimal use of pharmaceuticals.