Program offers a 90-day warranty for high-stakes procedures
MADISON, Wis. (Oct. 1, 2015) – Eleven doctors and five hospitals will be designated QualityPath® providers as of Jan. 1, 2016 when working as part of a hospital-and-doctor pairing for high-stakes procedures.
QualityPath doctors and hospitals apply for the program and complete a rigorous application process that shows they meet QualityPath standards. QualityPath uses national measures of quality, such as complication rates, and requires implementation of clinical processes shown to improve patient outcomes. For example, designated doctors and hospitals engage in shared decision-making with patients and use technology to avoid exposing patients to harm associated with overuse of imaging tests.
Five doctors and four hospitals are already QualityPath providers. They completed a maintenance of designation process, which included submitting updated quality data, to renew their designation.
In addition, Sauk Prairie Hospital and six doctors who perform surgery as part of Sauk Prairie Healthcare have committed to meet QualityPath designation standards by Jan. 1, 2016 for total hip replacement and knee replacement.
Designated doctors and hospitals also agree to a bundled price with a 90-day warranty to qualify for theQualityPath program. The warranty means that doctors and hospitals – not the patients and not the employer who sponsors their self-funded health benefits – pay the cost of related complications or readmissions arising from the procedure.
Designated QualityPath doctors and their hospital partners are:
Coronary Artery Bypass Graft (CABG)
- Dr. Vijay Kantamneni at St. Mary’s Hospital, Madison, Wis.
Knee Replacement and Total Hip Replacement
- Dr. James Bowers at Meriter Hospital, Madison, Wis.
- Dr. Lance Sathoff at Monroe Clinic, Monroe, Wis.
- Dr. Mark Barba at Rockford Memorial Hospital, Rockford, Ill.
- Dr. Michael Chmell at Rockford Memorial Hospital, Rockford, Ill.
- Dr. Matthew M. Hebert at Sauk Prairie Hospital, Prairie du Sac, Wis.
- Dr. Diana L. Kruse at Sauk Prairie Hospital, Prairie du Sac, Wis.
- Dr. Michael D.C. Lamson at Sauk Prairie Hospital, Prairie du Sac, Wis.
- Dr. David M. Marcu at Sauk Prairie Hospital, Prairie du Sac, Wis.
- Dr. William R. Niedermeier at Sauk Prairie Hospital, Prairie du Sac, Wis.
- Dr. Arnold N. Rosenthal at Sauk Prairie Hospital, Prairie du Sac, Wis.
Additional information about designated doctors and hospitals is provided at the end of this release, along with a quote from Sauk Prairie Healthcare CEO Larry Schroeder related to joining QualityPath as a designated provider.
“Doctors and hospitals make a significant commitment of talent and resources to participate in QualityPath,”said Alliance President and CEO Cheryl DeMars. “The result is high-value care that benefits patients and employers.”
Alliance member employers who participate in QualityPath offer 100 percent coverage of medical procedure costs to encourage employees and family members to use designated doctors and hospitals. Patients get personal assistance from a patient experience manager, who is also a registered nurse.
DeMars noted that The Alliance is exploring new areas of care for future QualityPath development.
The Alliance is an employer-owned, not-for-profit cooperative that moves health care forward by controlling costs, improving quality and engaging individuals in their health. It has 240 employer members that provide health benefit coverage to more than 100,000 people in Wisconsin, Illinois and Iowa.