Geisinger Medical Center was named one of three hospital providers for spine surgery in the Employers Centers of Excellence Network from The Pacific Business Group on Health.
The Pacific Business Group is a non-profit business coalition of 60 large healthcare purchaser members focused on healthcare quality and affordability, with participating employers including Lowe's, Walmart and JetBlue. Other healthcare provider members include Mercy Hospital in Springfield, Mo., and Virginia Mason Medical Center in Seattle.
Here are six things to know about the program:
1. ECEN selects hospitals and surgeons based on quality and outcomes data at the surgeon-level, and assessments include more than 30 public data metrics. The centers must demonstrate exceptional clinical outcomes, patient experience and shared decision-making.
2. The spine care specialists at member hospitals include spine surgeons, physiatrist, behavioral health providers and internal medicine physicians. Other specialists are also available to meet individual needs and make care recommendations that may or may not include surgery.
3. The member hospitals provide bundled rates, lumping all costs into a single sum. This offers predictability and price transparency. Employers pay for travel costs for employees and waive their standard patient contributions, such as deductible and copays.
4. Geisinger is recognized for its improved patient outcomes at reduced cost through bundled care models, including ProvenCare® Lumbar Spine.
5. The PBGH spine initiative launched on April 1 and Geisinger physicians have already seen several patients since the launch.
6. Co-directors of the ProvenCare Lumbar Spine Program are Jonathan Slotkin, MD, director of spinal surgery, Geisinger Neurosciences Institute; Michael Haak, MD, an orthopedic spines surgeon; and Sam Wu, MD, a physical medicine and rehabilitation physician.