The National Committee for Quality Assurance has recognized the University of Florida College of Medicine-Jacksonville and Shands Jacksonville as Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH) providers. This prestigious designation highlights UF and Shands’ commitment to following a set of national standards geared toward improving teamwork, better coordinating patient care and building the relationships between providers and patients.
The UF College of Medicine-Jacksonville and Shands Jacksonville are the first and only health organizations in Northeast Florida as well as the only academic medical group in Florida to receive this designation.
“Our focus is always on providing the most comprehensive and meaningful care possible for patients and their families,” said Nipa R. Shah, M.D., chair of the UF Department of Community Health and Family Medicine in Jacksonville. “This means using the core principles of the Patient-Centered Medical Home model of health care. As part of our mission, we also want to make sure that care is accessible and centers on what is best for each individual. This designation recognizes us for the high quality of care that we strive to provide at every patient visit, and beyond.”
The Patient-Centered Medical Home is a model of health care delivery that aims to improve the quality and efficiency of care and includes practices that promote partnerships between patients and their personal clinicians. Clinician-led care teams provide for all the patient’s health care needs and coordinate treatments across the health care system.
“Our patients always come first, and the medical home program is another way to give them the compassionate care all physicians strive for,” said Robert Nuss, M.D., dean of the regional campus for the UF College of Medicine-Jacksonville. “We want to thank the National Committee for Quality Assurance for recognizing our efforts.”
“Our physicians and caregivers are proud of this recognition,” said Jim Burkhart, president and CEO of Shands Jacksonville. “Our goal each and every day is to provide the best possible care for our patients. This achievement shows we are on the right path.”
Medical home clinicians demonstrate the benchmarks of patient-centered care, including open scheduling, expanded hours and the use of proven health information systems. Early evaluations of the Patient-Centered Medical Home model have shown promising results in improving care quality and lowering costs by increasing access to more efficient, more coordinated care. By avoiding unnecessary hospitalizations and emergency room visits, these early results are producing savings for payers, purchasers and patients.
To receive recognition, which is valid for three years, UF and Shands Jacksonville demonstrated the ability to meet the program’s key elements and embody the characteristics of the medical home. The standards 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.
“The patient-centered medical home promises to improve health and health care,” said NCQA President Margaret E. O’Kane. “The active, ongoing relationship between a patient and a clinician in medical homes fosters an all-too-rare goal in care: staying healthy and preventing illness in the first place. PPC-PCMH recognition shows that Shands Jacksonville and the University of Florida have tools, systems and resources to provide its patients with the right care at the right time.”
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