Promoting the value of patient experience
The last few weeks have been exceptionally active for the Alliance. In February, we released our third report on the quality of patient experience in our state. Patient experience is an important component of health care value, which has become a top priority of both health care leaders and consumers. The survey, sent to 181,000 Washington residents, found that the provider’s knowledge of the patient’s medical history and how well the provider communicated with the patient were key factors correlating with a patient’s overall rating of the provider. Nine variables, all concerning different aspects of effective provider communication and care coordination, explain 83 percent of the variation in the overall provider ratings.
Earlier this month, the Alliance, the Washington State Health Care Authority and King County co-hosted a workshop for health care purchasers on value-based purchasing. The event was generously co-sponsored by the Washington Roundtable and the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce. The interactive event inspired substantial discussions about benefit design, provider practice transformation and employee engagement. Special thanks to Rick Cooper, CEO of The Everett Clinic, who presented his perspective on what purchasers should demand of providers and to Dr. Jürgen Unützer, Professor and Chair at University of Washington, who talked about the importance of integrating behavioral health into not only primary care delivery, but also into a more holistic approach to paying for care.
We’ve placed the presentations and learning materials from the workshop online and will be sharing a video featuring highlights from the event in the next few weeks. Please share widely with any you may think will be interested in learning more about value-based purchasing. To continue growing knowledge in the community, the Washington Health Alliance and the Health Care Authority will be offering a series of webinars to learn more about value-based purchasing and to connect with others who are pioneering this work.
This is a pivotal moment for health care in our state. The Health Care Authority, with their large purchasing power, is leading the effort to move the health care market to one that rewards value over volume. And you don’t have to be the size of The Health Care Authority to participate. Employers are joining this movement as ACOs and other value-based arrangements begin to expand in the market.
We believe the Alliance’s core activities―performance measurement, public reporting and convening―will continue to benefit the movement for health care value. Thank you for your ongoing support of the Alliance and please share with us your perspective on how we can work collaboratively to reward value.