Disease Management - Living Well
with a Chronic Condition
Program Objective
Patients with chronic conditions can often
be as costly to a group as many other large cases. By ensuring
that patients have the information and equipment they need
to manage their condition effectively, our Disease Management
Program, developed in 1996, can help stabilize these patients,
offer peace of mind, and provide significant health care savings.
Through the following steps, our nurse case managers are able
to help prevent numerous complications, and give the patient
the opportunity to lead a healthy, full life.
- Evaluate clinical, economic and humanistic interventions
to delay clinical complications
- Encourage patient to take an
active role
- Support the physician and the plan of care
- Help eliminate
or minimize lost work days
Cost Savings
Chronic diseases account for 20% of America's
healthcare costs today. Through the Disease Management Program,
Innovative Care Management is able to simultaneously lower
the cost of these illnesses and help keep the employee at work
and productive.
| Chronic Disease: |
National Health Care Cost* |
| Heart Disease |
$329 Billion |
| Diabetes |
$54 Billion |
| Asthma |
$5.1 Billion |
| * Healthcare Buyer, 2004 |
As an example case study, consider a patient
who has chronic, unstable diabetes. Due to the complication,
the patient misses multiple days at work, visits the physician
frequently, and has multiple emergency room visits. After being
referred to Disease Management, the patient is reeducated on
managing blood sugars, good nutrition, and proper blood monitoring
techniques. Additionally, the patient is referred to an endocrinologist
and assessed for depression. As a result, this stands as a
potential savings of $15,000 from decreased physician visits
and avoidance of hospitalization, not to mention increased
production at work, and fewer lost work days. Through methods
such as this, our Disease Management Program is able to provide
a major improvement in work productivity and significant cost
savings.
Program Description
Whenever a patient is identified through
our other programs as having a potentially serious chronic
condition, our Disease Management department is notified.
Then, a Nurse Specialist will contact the individual by telephone
to offer assistance with the condition. After a brief interview,
the nurse is usually able to ascertain if the patient has
the understanding, equipment, and care needed for proper
control. Depending on the findings, the nurse is then able
to develop a customized plan to best deal with the chronic
illness, consisting of any of the following:
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Contact with the treating physician
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Medical equipment recommendation
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Throughout the care process, the Nurse
Specialist contacts the patient regularly until the condition
has been stabilized. Through these services, we have been
able to provide both short-term cost savings and the necessary
tools for these patients to regain control of their lives
and conditions, resulting in longer term cost savings.
A variety of chronic diseases are evaluated through this
program, including:
-
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Respiratory diseases (e.g. asthma and emphysema)
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The Disease Management Team
At Innovative Care Management, we hire
the most experienced employees to serve our patients and
clients. Our Disease Management team currently has 2 supervisors,
13 RNs, 2 of whom have RNC certification in maternal and
newborn nursing, 7 of whom have CCM certification, 1 of
whom has CPUR certification. Additionally, there are 3
Assistants, with a minimum of 6 months experience in our
Preauthorization Department, who are trained to handle
the specific needs of our Chronic Disease Case Managers.
Contact Us
Call Innovative Care Management to ask our sales department
about the Disease Management Program or our other programs.
We're here to help you start saving while maintaining the
highest quality care.
General Contact Information:
Innovative Care Management, Inc.
10117 SE Sunnyside Rd., Box F409
Clackamas, OR 97015
Toll Free: 800-862-3338
Portland Area: 503-654-9447
Fax: 503-654-8570
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