A Healthy Dialogue

Greater Baltimore Health Alliance Leads the Pack in the Maryland Primary Care Program

This week I would like to highlight the fantastic work being done by our Patient Centered Medical Homes led by Dr. Gregory Small, Medical Director of GBMC Health Partners Primary Care.

The Maryland Primary Care Program (MDPCP) was created by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation and the State of Maryland to improve health outcomes and the care experience while reducing costs for Medicare beneficiaries. MDPCP provides funds to practices which, for example, hire care managers to work with providers to improve health outcomes. Since 2019, the program has helped create more advanced primary care practices that are better equipped to keep patients with chronic diseases, such as diabetes, out of the hospital and as healthy as possible.

The run chart demonstrating the performance on diabetic outpatient management (Hemoglobin A1C rate out of range), an internal measurement across all practices for diabetes control, demonstrates that we are doing very well against national comparisons. Also, six out of the 10 GBMC primary care practices that participated in the MDPCP in 2020 were at or above the 75th percentile for diabetes control compared to all the other practices in MDPCP – now numbering approximately 400.

Dr. Small attributes this success to the development of a dedicated diabetes care pathway. Spearheaded by a diabetes committee in which he chairs, the pathway outlines how to approach a poorly controlled diabetes patient and deploy a care team, specifically our RN care managers. Our care managers are important partners on the team with physicians, advanced practitioners, and medical technicians, working with patients to ensure the necessary care and  that they are following evidence-based protocols to maximize their health.

The team also leverages technology to increase patient engagement. Tools including electronic  flowsheets that are visible to patients and the care team allow for more effective communication beyond what happens during office visits. 

Blog readers know that advanced primary care is a fundamental building block of the GBMC HealthCare System. The PCMH is critical to preventing disease and coordinating care for people who already have chronic disease. Let me thank Dr. Small and all of our primary care teams!

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International Infection Prevention Week

This week is International Infection Prevention Week (Oct. 17-23). This is  a time to highlight the importance of infection prevention and raise awareness of everyone’s role in protecting the public from healthcare-acquired infections. Infection prevention initiatives include hand washing, employee education related to safety and infection control, sharing best practices, and tracking improvements in performance.
GBMC is fortunate to have an incredible Infection Prevention Department and they have been tremendously important during the pandemic.

I want to thank our Infection Prevention team members for all they do every day!

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GBMC Team…Please get your flu shot!

Studies have shown that as many as 1 in 2 infected people never show classic flu symptoms but can shed virus for 5-10 days. This means that asymptomatic personnel can unknowingly spread influenza to a patient, co-worker, and personal contacts. If an employee contracts influenza they put patients, fellow staff, and their own family at serious risk.  For this reason, the annual flu vaccine has become a standard of care for healthcare providers. 

GBMC employees and volunteers are required to be immunized (those few who are not required to be immunized are required to wear masks during the flu season) to protect ourselves and our patients.  Getting your flu shot is even more important as the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic remain.

The deadline for influenza vaccination for all employees, contractors, volunteers, and students is Friday, Oct. 29.   We have two vaccination events coming up:

• Sunday, October 24: 2:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m., EHS Clinic, Room 4904
• Friday, October 29: 7:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m., Civiletti Conference Center

A valid GBMC ID badge must be presented at all flu vaccination events.

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October is National Cyber Security Awareness month 

Our ITS team continues to do an outstanding job in defending our networks while preserving the efficient delivery of healthcare services.

We learned a lot from last year’s cyber-attack and we will continue to become stronger because of it. Please remain vigilant and do not click on links unless you are sure they are safe. Please remember to always bring a questioning attitude to your use of e-mail, the electronic record, and other applications. Do not click links unless you are sure they are  safe, do not go to websites you aren’t familiar with, and ask IT for guidance if something doesn’t quite “seem right.” The cyber-attack we experienced started with a phishing email, so it is critical to report any suspicious emails to IT. Together, using simple internet safety precautions, we can help keep GBMC safer from cybercrime.

I want to thank Dave Hynson, GBMC’s Chief Information Officer, and his team for all their hard work in addressing the issues and keeping our systems safe.