Pediatric primary care providers can make a much greater contribution to children's healthy development by adopting a medical home model of care.
A "medical home" is an accessible and family-centered primary care practice that is well coordinated with medical and community services that children need. To be recognized as a Person-Centered Medical Home (PCMH) in Connecticut, providers need to meet practice standards set by the National Committee on Quality Assurance (NCQA).
The medical home model of care is steadily transforming health care nationwide, and CHDI is working closely with state partners to develop policies that support implementation of medical home components, including:
CHDI has also been instrumental in helping child health sites become NCQA-recognized medical homes. We offer direct support at no cost to pediatric primary care practices on a range of medical home topics through our Educating Practices program.
Using EPIC, we train providers to:
Access care coordination for their patients
Implement family-centered care
Incorporate developmental surveillance and screening in their well-child services
Improve their practices through data-driven quality improvement activities
Address behavioral health concerns
As a result of this work and a strong commitment from State leaders, Connecticut has become a national leader in promoting the PCMH model of care as the optimal health care delivery system for children.
In January 2012, Connecticut was the first state to implement a statewide medical home system through Medicaid.
Connecticut also created an 18-month glide path program with structured steps for meeting NCQA medical home standards.
The Connecticut Department of Social Services (DSS) reported in May 2016 that 342 pediatric primary care providers were delivering services in a NCQA-recognized medical home, serving more than 100,000 children insured by the State’s Medicaid program.
Analyses of Medicaid claims from PCMH versus non-PCMH child health sites have shown higher rates of well-child visits for children of all ages and higher rates of developmental screening and dental care.
Patient responses to the PCMH Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) survey show improved access to care and better communication between parents and children’s providers following implementation of PCMH components.
Contact us to learn more about the medical home model of care.
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