Engage People & Communities

Patient Portal Pilot – HealthInfoNet will partner with one Health Information Exchange (HIE) health care organization to provide their patients with access to their statewide Health Information Exchange (HIE) record. The pilot site must be able to connect their current "Patient Portal" to the HIE to allow patients to download a medical record summary document from the HIE known as the "Continuity of Care Document" (CCD).

Diabetes Prevention - The National Diabetes Prevention Program (NDPP), an evidence-based lifestyle change program focused on the prevention of Type 2 diabetes,  has been proven to help people at high risk for type 2 diabetes prevent or significantly delay the disease by making modest lifestyle changes. Maine CDC and SIM grant partners are working with payers to test how this program can improve health outcomes and reduce healthcare costs when applied to Value Based Insurance Design (VBID), Patient Centered Medical Home (PCMH), and Accountable Care Organizations (ACO).  If successful, this project will demonstrate the value of integrating NDPP into Maine's transformed healthcare system.

Community Health Workers - Maine's Community Health Worker (CHW) initiative will develop a system of CHWs as part of Maine's transformed healthcare system. CHWs engage underserved populations by:

• Providing culturally appropriate health education and outreach;
• Linking individuals, communities, healthcare providers and social services;
• Assuring people can access the services they need.
  

Research demonstrates that CHWs help improve health outcomes and reduce costs. Five SIM-funded CHW pilots will:

• Demonstrate the value of integrating CHWs into the health care team;
• Provide models for state-wide replication;
• Build a core group of experienced CHWs who can provide leadership for ongoing development of the system.

Consumer Engagement & Education Around Payment and System Delivery Reform – Engaging patients in payment and delivery system reform is crucial. As the end users of our healthcare system, patients will be the ones that ultimately accept or deny the changes taking place. Because some of the reforms might be construed as negative by patients, like the use of narrow networks in Value-Based Insurance Designs, the Maine Health Management Coalition will be spearheading a consumer engagement campaign in inform the public of what is changing and why it is important. They will produce videos, print materials, and will engage consumer advocates, Area Agency on Aging advisors, navigators, free care providers, brokers, human resource specialists, and Maine payer staff in trainings so that they better understand the changes taking place.