Opening new door

Using patient data in your practice to customize care delivery and patient education--a concept known as population health management (PHM)--helps providers take better care of their patients for fewer dollars and improve satisfaction rates, say MGMA members. Medical groups of all sizes are using various forms of PHM, from buying customized software and using EHRs to identify care gaps and map patient progress to manually reviewing paper charts and using information about patients with chronic diseases to improve health outcomes and avoid preventable incidents (emergency room visits). Tactics are as varied as the terms used to describe the efforts, which include health maintenance, chronic care management or routine screening, all of which are intended to get patients into practices regularly to identify markers for disease early and keep patients healthy. But the PHM umbrella term also includes new designs for care teams, unique approaches to patient communication, interactive use of data and partnerships with community groups that encourage healthy habits before chronic diseases develop.