When it comes to best practices in health care, little is reported. As editor in chief of case management products for Dorland Health, I have made a commitment to explore organizations that are setting trends and demonstrating their resolve to improve health and health care, and sharing them with readers of Case in Point and Across My Desk. This is why I was excited to attend an important meeting hosted by URAC last week.

As many of you know, URAC is a national accreditation organization with a fundamental focus on ensuring that healthcare consumers are protected and empowered. To deliver on that promise, URAC put into motion the makings of a meeting that could host organizations working on projects currently driving the market in consumer empowerment and protection. The meeting titled “Best Practices in Consumer Empowerment and Protection” was the culmination of a year’s work and the beginning for true transparency and sharing of best practices within the health care industry.

In his opening remarks, Alan Speilman, president and CEO of URAC, thanked the major sponsor of the event, Boehringer Ingelheim, and others who made the event possible. He also shared that the response from both accredited and nonaccredited organizations to this inaugural event was both gratifying and inspiring, due to the caliber and important work that is being done in improving care for patients. He noted that more than 70 organizations responded to the request for proposals that went out last fall. To validate the process, URAC worked with Dr. Tom Wilson from Trajectory Healthcare who, as the chair of the event, coordinated a committee of 27 judges that represented all sectors of the health care industry. The judges had set criteria to review and score each entry and choose winners. I spoke to Dr. Wilson before the meeting and he said that it was an interesting experience and one that gave him hope for a system that is important to the lives of so many people.

On Tuesday afternoon, award-winning journalist and television producer Linda Ellerbee kicked off the meeting with a keynote address. Linda shared her wisdom and wit about her personal experience with the health care system when she was diagnosed with and underwent treatment for breast cancer. She reminded everyone there that patients are searching for understanding, empathy and support, and depend on all health care professionals to ensure that caring is not lost in the advances that are being put into this fast-paced and technical system we call health care.

Dr. Michael Roizen closed the meeting by reminding us all that the most important and, really, the only person who can improve today’s broken health care system is the individual patient. It is up to us to educate, empower and support each patient to recognize the need to make behavioral changes that promote wellness. Dr. Roizen is the creator of RealAge Inc., a consumer-health media company and provider of personalized health information and management tools designed to motivate health-conscious people to look, feel and live life to the youngest. Roizen is a highly regarded, double board certified internist and anesthesiologist, serving as chief wellness officer and chair of the Wellness Institute at the Cleveland Clinic.

In between the two keynotes, the 22 finalists delivered concurrent sessions that described their programs, their challenges and their successes. Everyone in attendance was encouraged to ask questions and to take back ideas to their organizations if they found a program that fit their needs. I took a lot of notes, collected a lot of business cards and plan to follow up with several people who are interested in writing articles in Case in Point.

To honor the winners and present the awards, URAC hosted a Black Tie Gala and dinner on Tuesday evening. It was an elegant event that allowed all to sit back and enjoy the ceremony and honor colleagues who have worked hard to develop programs, projects and system-changes that are part of what is good about our complex health care system.

The winners of URAC’s Best Practices in Consumer Empowerment and Protection Awards included:

Honorable Mention

• OptumHealth, “OptumHealth Treatment Decision Support Program”
• Aetna Inc., “Aetna’s Health Care Transparency Initiative”
• Sensei Inc., a Humana Joint Venture, “Sensei for Weight Loss”
• BlueCross BlueShield of Kansas City and Prime Solutions Inc., “Adolescent Immunization Community Collaborative”
• FONEMED and Centra Care, “Exposure Hotline of Centra Care and FONEMED”
• Eli Lilly and Company, Comprehensive NeuroScience Inc. and the Missouri Department of Mental Health, “Behavioral Pharmacy Management Program”
• Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas, “Blue Care Connection: Closing the Gaps in the Obesity Epidemic”
• Medco Health Solutions, “Improving Patient Safety for Diabetic Patients”

Winners in the Health Care Management Category:

• Bronze Award, Paradigm Health, “Care Management Impact on Advance Directive Completion”
• Silver Award, INSPIRIS and Mercy Care Plan of Arizona, “INSPIRIS CarePlus Nurse Practitioner-Led Care”
• Gold Award, PsycHealth Ltd., “Behavioral Health Home Intervention Impact on Readmissions”

Winners in the Health Information Technology Category:

• Bronze Award, ActiveHealth Management, “Helping Consumers Close Gaps in their Health Care”
• Silver Award, Eli Lilly and Company, Comprehensive NeuroScience Inc. and Missouri Department of Mental Health, “Behavioral Pharmacy Management Program”
• Gold Award, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, “My HealtheVet”

Winners in the Pharmacy Benefit Management Category:

• Bronze Award, Express Scripts, “Express Scripts Generics Today”
• Silver Award, Prescription Solutions, “Geriatric RxMonitor Program”
• Gold Award, MemberHealth, LLC, “Improving ACE- I Utilization in Medicare Part D”

Winners in the Health Plan Category:

• Bronze Award, Martin’s Point Health Care, “Post Hospital Discharge Call Process”
• Silver Award, Molina Healthcare of Washington and Washington State Department of Social and Health Services, “The Washington Medicaid Integration Partnership”
• Gold Award, BlueCross and Blue Shield of Kansas City and Prime Solutions Inc., “Adolescent Immunization Community Collaborative”

Best Practices Awards:

• American Specialty Health, “Reduction in Regional Variation of X-ray Utilization”
• INSPIRIS and Mercy Care Plan of Arizona, “INSPIRIS CarePlus Nurse Practitioner-Led Care”

It was an interesting event and I am grateful for being able to experience it and share it with you. It is my understanding that planning is underway for next year’s event. As soon as there is information available, you will be sure to hear about it from Across My Desk.

Have a great week!

Anne Llewellyn, RN-BC, MS, BHSA, CCM, CRRN
Editor-in-Chief of Across My Desk, Case in Point magazine, and the Case Management Resource Guide
allewellyn@dorlandhealth.com