Network Health, a health plan providing coverage to more than 160,000 Massachusetts residents with low or moderate incomes, has partnered with Health Integrated, a leading health management solutions provider, to offer its members enhanced health coaching services.
Under the agreement, Network Health will integrate as a private label offering the Synergy Targeted Population Management program from Health Integrated. At the heart of the service is a focus on chronic ailments that often take up the bulk of healthcare dollars, including diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, congestive heart failure and asthma. Synergy also focuses on patients that have co-morbid behavioral health conditions, such as depression and anxiety, or other psychosocial factors that negatively affect their physical health.
"Using care coordination and coaching, Synergy empowers an important patient base to be more knowledgeable about their own health, more motivated to follow prescribed treatments and better able to establish and achieve goals for healthier lives," said Sam Toney, MD, vice chairman and chief medical officer of Health Integrated.
The Synergy program, which includes access to care coaches to help with adherence to a treatment plan, can help to drive clinical improvement measures. Toney said deploying Synergy to focus on improving the health of low and moderate income residents is important since these members "disproportionately suffer from multiple chronic conditions with psychosocial factors that exacerbate physical symptoms and disease progression."
Network Health offers this program at no cost for its members. Program participants work with their dedicated care coach and receive guidance, support and actionable need-specific strategies.
"As a health management solutions partner, Health Integrated offers an innovative, whole-person approach to improving our members' health," said Mary Jane McKendry, senior director of clinical affairs operations for Network Health. "We are pleased to partner with Health Integrated to enhance our disease management strategies and achieve our aggressive clinical outcomes, quality measures and efficiency goals."
Network Health has offered an integrated care model since 1997. It provides a team of in-house medical, mental health, social care and pharmacy professionals to coordinate member care, and partners with more than 18,000 primary care providers, specialists, hospitals and community organizations across Massachusetts.