Primary care physicians in Massachusetts are seeing measurable improvements in important aspects of healthcare quality, according to Massachusetts Health Quality Partners.
In its sixth annual “Quality Insights: Clinical Quality in Primary Care” report, comparing the performance of more than 150 medical groups across the state, MHQP found steady progress in results for clinical quality measures over the past six years, including well child visits and depression management.
Overall, Massachusetts physicians performed better than the national average on 28 of 29 adult and pediatric quality-of-care measures and above 90 percent on 15 of those measures. The participating medical groups performed below the national average on just one measure – the use of appropriate medications for adults with asthma.
Comparative provider performance information is expected play a key role in delivery-system reform, according to MHQP’s executive director, Barbra Rabson.
“Massachusetts has a significant head start on what is expected to be a rapid proliferation of quality measurement and reporting nationwide, especially as the use of EMRs grows,” she said.
“Physicians can use MHQP data to compare their results with those of other groups across the state and within geographic regions, focus on gaps in their performance, examine best practices and target opportunities for improving the way they provide care,” said Barbara Spivak, president of the Mount Auburn Cambridge IPA and a member of MHQP’s Physicians Council.
Organizations such as the Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA) and Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates, a multi-specialty medical group that is part of Atrius Health, have used the information to make improvements to their delivery systems for different conditions, including depression.
“By focusing on our patients’ compliance with antidepressant treatment, we have managed to improve the prognosis for people suffering from this serious condition that contributes to medical illness, disability and risk of suicide,” said Steven Adelman, Harvard Vanguard’s Chief of Behavioral Health.
Massachusetts medical groups perform above the national average on both of MHQP’s antidepressant medication measures but below the 90 percent benchmark.