TMCnet News
Seniors with Serious Illnesses Benefit from Advanced Illness Management: Hospice of the West Reports Enhanced Care Quality, Reduced Economic Burdens, High SatisfactionHospice of the West (HOW), a leading community-based hospice and palliative care organization in Maricopa County, Arizona, points to the importance of Advanced Illness Management (AIM) for health plan members with serious illnesses, effectively improving care quality, addressing financial consequences, and coordinating access to care. To further advance satisfaction with care and health plan participation, AIM utilizes a unique Palliative Illness Management™ solution, powered by Turn-Key Health, to deliver a range of services that are highly valued, but may have been missing in traditional models of care: symptom management, nutritional counseling, health system navigation, coordination with physicians, access to care, spiritual support, and more. "The most effective AIM model deploys local, specially trained palliative care teams to identify and engage with individuals and their families," says Dr. Ashish Sachdeva, associate physician, HOW. "Using sophisticated analytics, telephone and in-house assessments, these teams close gaps in care for these most vulnerable and fragile individuals." An interdisciplinary team of palliative care experts, including specially trained physicians, nurses, social workers, and other clinicians, have the skills, expertise and experience to also conduct sensitive discussions regarding quality of life at the end of life. "These timely conversations establish personalized goals of care that meet individual wishes," says Dr. Sachdeva. "This profound sensitivity and responsiveness to the issues that really matter to patients and families results in a better quality life for all. Medical needs are rapidly escalated to engage patients with appropriate medical resources, relieve stress and promote high levels of satisfaction." Armed with a greater understanding of their illness and prognosis, many individuals can opt against expensive, high tech or intensive treatments that may be unwanted and often result in hospitalizations. "This advanced care planning reduces economic burdens by avoiding out-of-pocket co-pays for hospitalizations, re-admissions, ICU and ER visits," says Dr. Sachdeva. "Reducing the financial consequences of serious illnesses is vitally important to members and families." About Hospice of the West Hospice of the West is a community based Hospice and Palliative Care organization based in Maricopa County, Arizona and is committed to serving the unique needs of individuals facing a serious illness and providing ongoing support to patient families and loved ones. http://hospicewestaz.com/ View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170207006174/en/ |
