National Healthcare Disparities Report - LDI Health Economist

Care Coordination
Importance
Chapter 6
Morbidity and Mortality
n Care coordination interventions have been shown to:
o Reduce mortality among patients with heart failure.
o Reduce mortality and dependency among patients with stroke.
o Reduce symptoms among patients with depression and at the end of life.
o Improve glycemic control among patients with diabetes (Shojania, et al., 2007).
Cost
n Care coordination interventions have been shown to:
o Reduce hospitalizations among patients with heart failure.
o Reduce readmissions among patients with mental health conditions.
o Be cost-effective when applied to treatment of depression (Shojania, et al., 2007).
Measures
The National Strategy for Quality Improvement in Health Care ii identified care coordination as one of six
national priorities for health care. The vision is health care providers working together to “ensure that the
patient gets the care and support he needs and wants, when and how he needs and wants it.” While
measurement of care coordination is at an early stage in development, key goals include: coordinating
transitions of care, reducing hospital readmissions, communicating medication information, and reducing
preventable emergency department visits. Measures reported in this chapter are organized around these goals:
n Transitions of care:
o Adequate hospital discharge information.
o Patients who reported that they always received test results (Massachusetts only; measure
reported separately for adults and children).
n Hospital readmissions:
o Readmissions for congestive heart failure.
n Medication information:
o Provider asking about medications from other doctors.
o Hospital electronic exchange of medication information.
n Preventable emergency department visits:
o Emergency department visits for asthma.
ii
Available at www.healthcare.gov/center/reports/quality03212011a.html.
180 National Healthcare Disparities Report, 2011