Ocean Health Initiatives (OHI) Earns National Recognition for Patient-Centered Care
The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) announced that Ocean Health Initiatives (OHI), Lakewood, has achieved Level 3 Recognition at all three of its sites for Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH), a national program that uses evidence-based, patient-centered processes to focus on highly coordinated care and long-term participative relationships.
The patient-centered medical home is a model of care emphasizing care coordination and communication to transform primary care into “what patients want it to be,” often leading to higher quality and lower costs, and improvement in patients’ and providers’ reported experiences of care.
To receive Level 3 Recognition, which expires March 2016, OHI met key program components in the following areas: written standards for patient access and continuity of care; use of patient feedback materials; appropriate use of charting tools to track patients and organize clinical information; responsive care management techniques with an emphasis on preventive care for individual patients and for the entire patient population; adaptation to patient’s cultural and linguistic needs; use of information technology for prescriptions, test and referral tracking, and coordination with other health care providers; use of evidence-based guidelines to treat chronic conditions; and the measurement and reporting of clinical and service performance.
These key standards OHI met are aligned with the joint principles of the Patient-Centered Medical Home established with the American College of Physicians, the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the American Osteopathic Association.
NCQA President Margaret E. O’Kane said, “The patient-centered medical home raises the bar in defining high-quality care by emphasizing access, health information technology and partnerships between clinicians and patients. PCMH Recognition shows that OHI has the tools, systems, and resources to provide their patients with the right care at the right time.”
As part of Level 3 Recognition, NCQA will list OHI’s practices and clinicians on its website with a recognition seal for PCMH. NCQA is a private, nonprofit organization dedicated to improving health care quality. NCQA’s Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS®) is the most widely used performance measurement tool in health care.
For more information about OHI, visit www.ohinj.org. For questions, contact Douglas Clark at 732-363-6655 or promotionsdept@ohinj.org.
About Ocean Health Initiatives : OHI, a federally qualified health center (FQHC), with locations at 101 Second Street, Lakewood; and 301 Lakehurst Road, Toms River; and 333 Haywood Road, Manahawkin, provides comprehensive preventative and primary care, including pediatrics, maternal and child health, prenatal, WIC, universal immunizations, and dental health to the area’s uninsured, underinsured, and undocumented residents on a sliding-fee scale, based on an individual’s or family’s ability to pay.
OHI has a bilingual staff available to assist patients and callers. To become a patient of OHI, call a representative in the Call Center at either 732-552-0377, Toms River, or 732-363-6655, Lakewood. Visit www.ohinj.org. for further information.