Baylor Health Care System and the 14 other members of the High Value Healthcare Collaborative (HVHC) will share a $26 million grant from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation. The three-year grant will fund a program to engage patients and implement shared decision-making for patients facing hip, knee or spine surgery, and for patients with diabetes or congestive heart failure.
“This grant will help accelerate Baylor’s current efforts to further elevate each patient’s role in the health care decision-making process,” says Andrew Masica, MD, MSCI, vice president of Clinical Innovation. Along with Dr. Masica, Terri Nuss, MS, MBA, vice president of Patient Centeredness, and Ashley Collinsworth, MPH, director of Health Services Research, will be leading Baylor’s involvement in the grant.
Baylor and the other HVHC members will use the funding primarily to hire and train Patient and Family Activators, who will be responsible for educating and encouraging patients and their families to stay engaged and participate in decisions about their care.
“Multiple studies have shown that when patients feel empowered to make well-informed health care decisions based on their own preferences, health care utilization decreases, clinical outcomes improve, and patient satisfaction increases,” says Dr. Masica. Over the long-term, shared decision making programs could be a key component of cost reduction strategies.
The HVHC is a cooperative comprised of some of the top health care organizations across the country – including the Mayo Clinic and Intermountain Health Care – that is taking a team approach to reign in health care costs while improving quality of care. Members of the HVHC share critical information and resources, such as costs, outcomes data, best practices and care pathways with both each other and the public.
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About Baylor Scott & White Health
As the largest not-for-profit health system in the state of Texas, Baylor Scott & White promotes the health and well-being of every individual, family and community it serves. It is committed to making quality care more accessible, convenient and affordable through its integrated delivery network, which includes the Baylor Scott & White Health Plan, Baylor Scott & White Research Institute, the Baylor Scott & White Quality Alliance and its leading digital health platform – MyBSWHealth. Through 51 hospitals and more than 1,200 access points, including flagship academic medical centers in Dallas, Fort Worth and Temple, the system offers the full continuum of care, from primary to award-winning specialty care. Founded as a Christian ministry of healing more than a century ago, Baylor Scott & White today serves more than three million Texans. For more information, visit: BSWHealth.com