Like Pulling a Sword From a Stone

Medical practices continue to face new and novel challenges. To provide assistance and an infusion of new ideas, the American Medical Association (AMA) and the Medical Group Management Association (MGMA) joined together to sponsor a competition of ideas for medical practice improvement. The competition is called the Practice Innovation Challenge.

At its meeting in Nashville, the AMA and MGMA announced the five winners whose proposals offer “the best innovative strategies that will help physicians and their staffs thrive in the new health care environment.”

Judges found the five below demonstrated the most high-value, easy-to-adopt solutions that can help improve efficiency in a medical practice and enhance patient care. The winners each received an award of $10, 000. In addition the practice will have the opportunity to develop an educational module with the AMA & MGMA to be shared with practices across the country.

The winners are:

1. Asante Physician Partners, Medford, Oregon
   Patient-Centered New Patient Process
   A streamlined patient registration process that provides complete and accurate information on new patients while substantially cutting administrative costs.

2. Center for Excellence in Primary Care at the University of California, San Francisco
   Health Coaching
   A proactive model for engaging with patients in collaborative health action plans that saves physicians time while enhancing patient outcomes and satisfaction.

3. Stanford University, Stanford, California
   The Letter Project
   A catalyst for overcoming language barriers with patients and providing accessible written information in numerous languages that can facilitate end-of-life planning discussions with a physician.

4. University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, Tennessee
   Building a Medical Home-Based Care Transition Team
   A team approach to preventable drug therapy problems that decreased hospital readmissions in targeted patients.

5. Vanguard Medical Group, Montclair, New Jersey
   Medical Assistant In-Service Education
   An interactive education curriculum that improves the performance of medical assistants as important members of the team-based care model.

President and CEO of MGMA Halee Fischer-Wright, M.D., said, “It’s a testament to what’s possible when medical practices get recognized for being stronger, more aligned and competitive in an ever-changing health care landscape.”