Self-management support should be routine part of primary health care delivery

Health Council of Canada releases report on self-management support for Canadians with chronic conditions

TORONTO, May 15, 2012 /CNW/ - Today the Health Council of Canada released Self-management support for Canadians with chronic health conditions: A focus for primary health care. The report explores how self-management support can improve patient outcomes and calls for health systems across Canada to provide self-management supports in a more systematic way. It profiles a range of practices and recommends targeted investments in self-management support strategies.

Chronic disease in Canada costs more than $90 billion a year in lost productivity and health care costs. And with half of Canadians reporting at least one chronic condition, these costs will continue to rise. Successful self-management can help save health resources and keep patients out of hospital for preventable incidences.

Self-management refers to the things a patient does to live well with chronic conditions, like monitoring symptoms, taking medication as prescribed, and recognizing what health-related behaviours will help manage their conditions. New research shows that patients who successfully self-manage tend to have reduced disease-related effects and may make better use of health services because they monitor symptoms effectively and can prevent or respond to problems before they become a crisis.

Self-management support includes education and health coaching and is key to ensuring patients manage their health successfully. In Canada, 95% of adults with multiple chronic conditions have a regular primary care provider - making this a clear area in which to anchor self-management support. Primary health care providers should be an ongoing source of self-management support to follow up with patients and link them to community services and specialists. The problem is that this support role is not yet a routine part of care in Canada.

The report discusses how primary health care providers can better assume this support role for patients with chronic conditions. Self-management support can start at routine primary care visits where providers can empower patients to confidently ask questions and get involved in making decisions about their health. The provider can assist with self-management education and technical skills, and can support personal goal-setting with the patient. Another important role for providers is to link patients to community-based programs. There are many promising programs that exist to support self-management, but patients may need their provider to point them in the right direction and follow up with them on their progress. Providers can also improve aspects of their practice environment in order to better serve patients with chronic conditions.  Making better use of all members of a health care team can ease time pressures on physicians and provide patients with the expertise and coaching they need. Health care professionals like nurses, social workers and pharmacists can play a role (especially when many family doctors only have 15 minutes, on average, to devote to patient visits). Offering group visits and integrating self-management support programs directly into primary care settings can also yield positive outcomes.

Given their access to Canadians with chronic-disease, primary health care providers need to be enabled to deliver self-management support. We must invest in ongoing education for providers in self-management support, and encourage the expansion of primary health care teams which can use a variety of health care providers to deliver self-management support. Supporting and creating better links between primary care providers and community-based self management programs will help increase participation and engagement by patients in their own care.

"Self-management has great potential for patients, providers and Canadians," said John G. Abbott, CEO, Health Council of Canada. "Patients and their families will enjoy better quality of life. Primary care providers will have the tools to help their patients succeed."

Investing in ongoing, long-term support for self-management support needs to be a key priority for governments. Collaboration among governments, health care providers and chronic disease organizations can help fill gaps in service and create an integrated, system-wide approach to self-management support. Further recommendations to enable self-management support in a more systematic way can be found in the report.

About the Health Council of Canada

Created by the 2003 First Ministers' Accord on Health Care Renewal, the Health Council of Canada is an independent national agency that reports on the progress of health care renewal. The Council provides a system-wide perspective on health care reform in Canada, and disseminates information on leading practices and innovation across the country. The Councillors are appointed by the participating provincial and territorial governments and the Government of Canada.

Image with caption: "Self-management support for Canadians with chronic health conditions: A focus for primary health care (CNW Group/Health Council of Canada)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20120515_C7467_PHOTO_EN_13697.jpg

Audio with caption: "Podcast with Kelly McQuillen, Director, Acting Executive Director, B.C. Ministry of Health, and Connie Davis, a nurse practitioner and consultant on health care design". Audio available at: http://stream1.newswire.ca/media/2012/05/15/20120515_C7467_AUDIO_EN_13701.mp3

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New Health Care Law Helps Expand Primary Care Physician Workforce

Tue, Feb 14, 2012, 6:50 AM EST - U.S. Markets open in 2 hrs 40 mins

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Paladina Health Opens Innovative Primary Care Clinic in Tacoma

Thu, Feb 2, 2012, 6:01 PM EST - U.S. Markets closed

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Myca Health Adds New Primary Care Clients Serving 10,000 Patients to its Hello Health® Community

NEW YORK, Jan. 25, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Myca Health Inc. announced today that in the past month primary care practices serving over 10,000 patients have contracted to implement the Hello Health® Patient Management platform. The company recently signed agreements with family practice, internal medicine, pediatric and integrative medicine practices in five states. Hello Health is a free Patient Management platform integrating an electronic health record, an online patient health portal and a suite of secure, web-based communication tools designed to connect patients with their health information and their physician.   Primary care physicians generate incremental income from the platform through Hello Health's revenue-sharing patient subscription model.

"We are very pleased to welcome more primary care practices to the Hello Health community," said Nat Findlay, CEO and founder of Myca Health. "Our message to overworked and financially-challenged practices that they do not have to settle for a traditional electronic health record, even if it is free, is resonating. Hello Health is unique in today's market not only for its ability to add much needed revenue to a practice but by building a cloud-based platform that engages patients with their health information and their care team."

"The promise of a free EMR first got our attention," said Mike Segarra MD, a partner in North Brunswick Pediatrics, a four-doctor pediatric practice in New Jersey.  "And as we reviewed the Hello Health platform in depth we recognized the potential to bring a new level of convenience and access to our patients.  We look forward to offering online scheduling, prescription renewals, lab requests and even virtual visits to our practice. That we can generate incremental revenue as we enhance the service we provide our patients and their families while reducing the workload on our staff is truly remarkable."

Hello Health includes training, implementation and patient communications as part of its no-cost business model for established primary care practices. Practices generate income through revenue sharing of the patient subscription dues and online consultations including video visits billed directly to patients.

Recently Myca Health released version 5.0 of the Hello Health platform which is Surescripts® certified for prescription routing. Additional features improve task management, claims and billing and document management leveraging the breadth of the Hello Health platform as the operating system of today's family practice, internal medicine or pediatric office.

About Myca Health Inc.
At Myca Health we question why electronic medical records cannot only be free but a source of revenue for practices and why EMRs do not engage patients more in their care. We think its time for a technology platform to help doctors regain control of their practices. Our Hello Health solution provides a Patient Management platform that integrates an EMR for the practice, a personal health portal for patients, and a suite of online communication tools to connect patients, health information and providers together. All on a single, elegant cloud-based platform that is revenue generating for practices and empowering for patients. Hello Health is marketed in the U.S. by Hello Health, Inc. a subsidiary of Myca Health, Inc. For more information, please visit myca.com and hellohealth.com.

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Myca Health Focuses on Improving Efficiency of Primary Care with Latest Release of Hello Health®

NEW YORK, Jan. 20, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Myca Health Inc. announced today the release of  version 5.0 of  its cloud-based Hello Health® Patient Management solution for primary care practices. The platform connects patients and their primary care physician through an integrated electronic health record, online patient portal and a suite of secure, web-based communication tools. Hello Health version 5.0 is Surescripts® certified for prescription routing among many new features designed to streamline workflow for primary care physicians and their staff.  Hello Health is a free EHR-based solution for primary care practices and generates incremental income for physicians through a revenue-sharing patient subscription model.

"Hello Health version 5.0 is our most significant release to date and reflects our focus on providing the most complete Patient Management solution for primary care," said Nat Findlay, CEO and founder of Myca Health. "Not only is Hello Health version 5.0 2011/2012 compliant and certified as a Complete EHR by the Certification Commission for Health Information Technology (CCHIT), but with this release Hello Health version 5.0 is Surescripts certified for prescription routing. Additional features improve task management, claims and billing and document management leveraging the breadth of the Hello Health platform as the operating system of today's family practice, internal medicine or pediatric office."

The Surescripts electronic prescription routing for Hello Health version 5.0 allows legible new prescriptions to be sent directly from Hello Health to the computer at a pharmacy of the patient's choice. Renewal authorization requests can be sent directly to Hello Health. Physicians can then review and respond to pending requests with a few keystrokes. The Surescripts network connects prescribers in all 50 states to the nation's leading payers, chain and independent pharmacies.

Hello Health defines a new generation of technology for primary care practices that builds on traditional practice management and electronic health records marketed today.  Unlike standalone electronic health record systems, the EHR within Hello Health is instead part of an integrated Patient Management platform that engages patients with a bi-directional patient portal and secure communication tools to access their health information and their care team. It recognizes that patients are fundamentally health care consumers who expect greater online access and convenience and are willing to pay for it. As a no-cost solution that also provides incremental revenue, the Hello Health business model is designed to improve the economics of operating a primary care practice.

For more information on Hello Health, listen to the podcast, Introducing Hello Health Version 5.0.

About Myca Health Inc.

At Myca Health we dare to think differently. We question why electronic medical records cannot only be free but a source of revenue for practices and why EMRs do not engage patients more in their care. We think its time for a technology platform to help doctors regain control of their practices. Our Hello Health solution provides a Patient Management platform that integrates an EMR for the practice, a personal health portal for patients, and a suite of online communication tools to connect patients, health information and providers together. All on a single, elegant cloud-based platform that is revenue generating for practices and empowering for patients. Hello Health is marketed in the U.S. by Hello Health, Inc. a subsidiary of Myca Health, Inc. For more information, please visit myca.com and hellohealth.com.

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