News

February 15, 2023   Volume to Value - How   In the last Clinical Corner “Volume to Value – Why?”, dated February 1, 2023, we discussed value-based care. Value increases when costs go down while quality and patient experience improve. (1) . Success requires a shift in physician attention and a review of priorities in practice workflow. Here are important activities to assist in the commitment to value: Physician engagement – no longer is it about participation alone, we need physician engagemen...

February 1, 2023 Volume to Value - Why   “62% of patient respondents had never heard of value-based care, yet 59% said they would support a healthcare system where providers are paid based on the quality of work versus volume,” in a survey of 1,000 US healthcare consumers. (1) The survey reveals patients’ lack of awareness regarding value-based care. 51% of physicians indicate they are aware of the cost of the treatments and tests they order and 46% of physicians indicated they follow clinical path...

January 15, 2023 “A Breath of Fresh Air”   McLaren Physician Partners (MPP) is participating in a Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBSM) Collaborative Quality Initiative (CQI) called INHALE (Inspiring Health Advances in Lung Care). Michigan has high prevalence rates of asthma and COPD. There are significant disparities in the burden of disease across the state. The economic burden of asthma alone in Michigan is approximately $3 billion per year driven by emergency department visits, hospitalizations, readm...

January 1, 2023 Social Determinants of Health (SDoH) DEFINITION: Social Determinants of Health (SDoH) are the nonmedical factors that influence health outcomes. They are “the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work, and age that shape health.”   SDoH can be grouped into 5 domains: 1 Economic Stability  Help people earn steady incomes that allow them to meet their health needs. (e.g., employment, income, poverty). Education Access and Quality Increase educational opportunities and...

November 15, 2022 Treatment of Vasomotor Symptoms in Menopause SUMMARY: Vasomotor and vaginal symptoms are cardinal symptoms of menopause. The occurrence of vasomotor symptoms increases during the transition to menopause and peaks approximately 1 year after the final menstrual period. Systemic estrogen hormone therapy (HT), with or without progestin, is the most effective therapy for menopause-related vasomotor symptoms. Oral and transdermal (i.e., patches, gels, or sprays) estrogen, alone or in co...

November 1, 2022 MALE TESTOSTERONE REPLACEMENT A PRIMARY CARE APPROACH   SUMMARY Age related low testosterone is associated with aging as testosterone levels naturally decrease after the age of 30. The American Urology Association (AUA) has reported that two out of every 100 men deal with low testosterone levels. Testosterone therapy might seem like the ultimate anti-aging formula, yet the health benefits of testosterone therapy for age-related decline in testosterone aren't clear.   DISCUSSIO...

October 15, 2022   Does Quality Reporting make me a Worse Doctor?   Mrs. Jones, a 68-year-old woman, has a history and diagnosis of hypertension. Her blood pressure, taken correctly at her November office visit, is 139/89. Under the Medicare Measures section in the McLaren Physician Partners Top Ten Quality Metrics Quick Reference, blood pressure of 139/89 or less is “adequately controlled” Under the 2017 American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology blood pressure guidelin...

October 1, 2022   Diabetic Eye Exam – Use Ophthalmologists and Optometrists. “The Best Preventative Service is the one that gets done.” About 4.1 million US adults 40 years and older have diabetic retinopathy – 1 of every 12 persons with diabetes mellitus in this age group has advanced, vision-threatening retinopathy (2004). (1) About one in three people with diabetes who are older than age 40 already have some signs of diabetic retinopathy (2014). (2) Finding and treating diabetic retinopathy earl...

September 15, 2022 OBESITY the EPIDEMIC   Obesity is epidemic in the United States today and a major cause of death, attributable to heart disease, cancer, and diabetes. As t he most prevalent Chronic Disease in the United States, o besity costs this country about $150 billion a year, or almost 10 percent of the national medical budget. Approximately one in three adults and one in six children are obese.   DEFINITIONS 4 : Adults: Healthy weight  is a BMI of 18.5 to 24.9 Overweight  i...

September 1, 2022 Vaping and E-Cigarettes Discussions to Have With Patients E-cigarettes are electronic devices that heat a liquid and produce an aerosol, or a mix of small particles into the air. They can be used to deliver nicotine, marijuana and other drugs. E-cigarettes are known by many different names. They are sometimes called “e-cigs,” “e-hookahs,” “mods,” “vape pens,” “vapes,” “tank systems,” and “electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS).” 4   FACTS ABOUT VAPING: 1 1: Vaping is less har...