Photo by S.J. Grady.
Europe Region Medical Command Public Affairs Office
After six months of hard work, Stuttgart Army Health Clinic has been recognized by the National Committee for Quality Assurance as an Army Patient Centered Medical Home or PCMH.
The PCMH is a team-based model based on the premise that the best health care begins with a strong primary care foundation, accompanied by quality and resource efficiency incentives.
“I’m proud to say that the NCQA Patient Centered Medical Home means national recognition for the beneficiaries in the Stuttgart community, and this means that even here, while living overseas, they have access to excellent medical care,” said Col. Joanna Reagan, Stuttgart Army Health Clinic commander.
As part of the recognition process, the Stuttgart Army Health Clinic staff submitted hundreds of documents covering every facet of the care they provide that provided fact-based evidence that the clinic was conducting business as a true Medical Home.
“The key component of the PCMH is having a ‘whole’ team approach for medical care with their primary care provider, their nurse, medic, and support team,” added Reagan.
The NCQA is a non-profit organization that measures the ability of medical facilities to provide quality health care through standardized, objective measurement guidelines.
NCQA requires recognized facilities to enhance access to care and patients’ continuity with their provider teams, keep track of patient data to help manage patients’ wellbeing, plan and manage care using evidence-based practices, provide self-care support and community resources, as well as track and coordinate tests, referrals and other care for patients. Finally, clinics have to show that they measure their performance and patients’ feedback to continue improving the quality of care.
As an Army Patient Centered Medical Home, here’s what patients can expect from the Stuttgart Army Health Clinic:
• A personal provider: Each patient has an ongoing relationship with a personal physician, physician assistant or nurse practitioner who is trained to provide first contact, continuous and comprehensive care.
• Physician directed medical practice: The personal physician leads a team(s) of individuals at the practice level who collectively take responsibility for ongoing patient care.
• Whole person orientation: The personal provider is responsible for providing all of the patient’s health care needs or for arranging care with other qualified professionals.
• Coordinated and integrated care: Each patient’s care is coordinated and integrated across all elements of the health care system and the patient’s community.
• Quality and safety focus: All members of the healthcare team are focused on ensuring high quality care in the medical home.
• Improved access: In the PCMH, enhanced access to care options are available through open scheduling, same day appointments, secure messaging, and other innovative options for communication between patients, their personal physician and practice staff.
Stuttgart Army Health Clinic is the eighth PCMH in the Europe Regional Medical Command.
Army Medicine’s goal is to have all of its primary care facilities in the continental United States and overseas achieve NCQA recognition and transform to the Patient Centered Medical Home model of care no later than October of this year. The transition to the PCMH is part of Army Medicine’s overall shift from a health care system to a system for health.
For more information on the Stuttgart Army Health Clinic, visit here.