IN SICKNESS AND IN HEALTH
Alternative Payment Models Help Older Adults Age on Their Terms
Value-based care models reimburse hospitals, health systems, and other healthcare providers based, in part, on care quality and outcomes. These models enable healthcare organizations like OneHealth Nebraska to deliver personalized services to older adults and their caregivers.
RoseAnne and Dawson's story:
RoseAnne was diagnosed with dementia. She lived with Dawson, her husband of more than 60 years, in an independent living facility. Dawson took care of her at first, but, as dementia progressed, it was clear that RoseAnne needed more support. Dawson was overwhelmed, but he worried that getting RoseAnne the help she needed would mean her living at a faraway facility.
Their primary care provider at OneHealth Nebraska put them in touch with a chronic care manager. The chronic care manager called Dawson and RoseAnne’s independent living facility, discovered memory care units were available, and helped Dawson move RoseAnne into a memory care unit in the very same building where they already lived.
Now, Dawson walks just a short distance to see RoseAnne each day. RoseAnne has the support she needs, and Dawson is still able to participate in her care with the assistance of trained memory care personnel. The help RoseAnne and Dawson received was made possible by Medicare’s incentive for value-based care.
By focusing on patient outcomes and quality of care, value-based care models allow healthcare organizations like OneHealth Nebraska to help older adults manage complex conditions like dementia near those they love and in settings where they are the most comfortable. Without continued support for value-based care, people like RoseAnne and Dawson might not get the support they need.
This patient story has been de-identified to protect patient privacy consistent with HIPAA – no real patient names are referenced, while the experience described reflects actual events.