The Indiana Health Information Exchange, Inc. (IHIE) announced today more than 750 Indiana physicians from 174 practice sites around the state have agreed to publicly post their clinical quality measure scores on the Quality Health First® Program’s public reporting website. The website lists reports, grouped by geographic regions, detailing how well a physician practice performs in a number of clinical measures, including the treatment of diabetes, women’s and children’s healthcare, heart health and respiratory issues. Physician practices that participate in IHIE’s Quality Health First® Program (QHF) and agree to have their scores posted on the website are included in the public reports, which will be updated semi-annually.

(QHF Public Reporting Web Link: http://www.ihie.org/Solutions/Quality-Health-First-Program/public-reporting.php )

“QHF was developed as a tool to help physicians manage and monitor the care provided to patients with chronic diseases,” said Harold J. Apple, president and chief executive officer of IHIE. “Reporting these quality scores is a significant milestone for physician practices seeking to demonstrate their commitment to improving the quality of care provided to patients.”

Physicians meeting the minimum patient population requirements can participate in QHF and are then eligible to enroll in the public reporting program. Participating QHF physicians receive reimbursements from payers based on improvements in the measured categories.

“We support transparency in health care. Reporting the quality measures can only improve the cooperation between patient and physician to follow through on recommended care and improve the health of the people we serve,” Ben Park, MD, chief executive officer of American Health Network of Indiana, LLC (AHN) said. “AHN has actively participated in QHF for several years and our physicians’ scores reflect our dedication to continuous quality improvement.”

The QHF Program began in 2008 as a collaborative effort between IHIE and the Employers’ Forum, as well as the Indiana Network for Patient Care, healthcare provider groups, payers and the state of Indiana. Through this program, physician practices are able to review and verify the data in the quality measure performance reports provided to them and can update the data via the information contained in the patient medical records on file.

“The launch of the QHF Program’s public reporting website is an important milestone towards greater transparency in healthcare and patient empowerment,” said Gloria Caruthers, Director of Benefits Strategy for Cummins, Inc., based in Columbus, Ind. “We are continually identifying new ways to provide our employees with more information that can help them make smart healthcare and lifestyle choices. We plan to encourage employees to use the public reporting site as a resource in their healthcare decision-making process and believe this additional information will be useful and beneficial.”

More information about the QHF Program methodology, measures definitions and specification is available on the public reporting website.

American Health Network (AHN) is Indiana’s largest physician-owned group practice with over 70 offices and more than 200 primary care physicians and specialists in Indiana and Ohio. The organization is driven with the visionary purpose of providing high-quality, cost-effective care, supported by a robust electronic infrastructure in its quest to provide exceptional care to its patients.

Cummins Inc., a global power leader, is a corporation of complementary business units that design, manufacture, distribute and service engines and related technologies, including fuel systems, controls, air handling, filtration, emission solutions and electrical power generation systems. Headquartered in Columbus, Indiana, (USA) Cummins employs approximately 44,000 people worldwide and serves customers in approximately 190 countries and territories through a network of more than 600 company-owned and independent distributor locations and approximately 6,500 dealer locations. Cummins earned $1.85 billion on sales of $18.0 billion in 2011. Press releases can be found on the Web at www.cummins.com.

The Employers’ Forum of Indiana is a coalition of large public and private employers, physicians, hospitals, public officials, insurers, health plans and other interested parties. The objective of the Forum is to work as a community to address the challenges of the local healthcare marketplace.

Indiana Health Information Exchange, Inc. (IHIE) is a non-profit corporation formed in 2004 by the Regenstrief Institute, private hospitals, local and state health departments, BioCrossroads and other prominent organizations in Indiana. IHIE is the nation's largest health information exchange organization, connecting more than 90 hospitals in the state to deliver clinical information to providers securely and efficiently, along with providing information to assist providers as they care for patients needing preventive care and management of chronic diseases. IHIE is the lead organization in the 46-county Central Indiana Beacon Community, one of 17 national cooperatives formed to help advance healthcare quality and efficiency. This collaboration will help communities in Indiana identify opportunities to measurably improve patient care. http://www.ihie.org/About/IHIE-Hospital-Network.php)

To learn more, visit www.ihie.org.

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