FAIR Health Unveils Groundbreaking Collaborations with Leading Age-Friendly Health Systems

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Oct 08, 2024, 08:30 ET

Initiative will Generate Insights into Use of Healthcare Engagement and Shared Decision-Making Tools at the Point of Care

NEW YORK, Oct. 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- FAIR Health, Inc., the national, independent nonprofit, today announced collaborations with clinical sites at four universities under a national initiative generously funded by The John A. Hartford Foundation (JAHF). The academic centers are Penn Medicine, The Ohio State University, Emory University and the University of Rochester Medical Center. As part of this groundbreaking effort, clinicians at the four sites, each of which have achieved Age-Friendly Health Systems recognition, are engaging older patients and caregivers at the point of care with healthcare engagement and shared decision-making (SDM) tools provided by FAIR Health, which are available on FAIR Health for Older Adults (fairhealtholderadults.org).

FAIR Health Unveils Groundbreaking Collaborations with Leading Age-Friendly Health Systems

FAIR Health's collaborations with these clinical sites mark a significant step forward in age-friendly care, by providing point-of-care access to tools that facilitate healthcare engagement and SDM, the collaborative process by which patients, caregivers and providers decide on care and treatment, while balancing clinical evidence with patients' preferences and values. As part of this JAHF-funded initiative, clinicians at the recognized Age-Friendly Health Systems sites will leverage FAIR Health's suite of SDM and FH^® Total Treatment Cost (TTC) tools in clinical settings and distribute printed patient toolkits with actionable checklists, educational content and more. Through surveys and qualitative discussions, FAIR Health will evaluate the use and impact of these tools on decision making and healthcare engagement, generating valuable insights that may potentially inform future healthcare practices and policies at the micro and macro levels. The onsite implementation effort complements FAIR Health's national, multichannel Healthy Decisions for Healthy Aging campaign, which launched in January 2024 under the current grant to disseminate FAIR Health for Older Adults to older patients and family caregivers.

Robin Gelburd, President of FAIR Health, said: "FAIR Health is proud to collaborate with these four leading clinical institutions on this innovative effort to use and evaluate our shared decision-making and healthcare engagement tools at the point of care under the generous grant we have received from The John A. Hartford Foundation. We look forward to sharing the insights that result from these collaborations to inform the full range of healthcare stakeholders involved in the care of older adults at the micro and macro levels."

At the Abramson Cancer Center at Pennsylvania Hospital, part of Penn Medicine, clinicians are evaluating FAIR Health's SDM tool for early-stage breast cancer to facilitate informed decision-making discussions with patients. "We're pleased to take part in this national initiative that's addressing the important issue of making sure patients feel informed to take part in decisions about their care," said Mary Pat Lynch, DNP, RN, AOCN, NEA-BC, Administrative Director of the Cancer Service Line and Abramson Cancer Center at Pennsylvania Hospital. Sarah H. Kagan, PhD, RN, Professor of Gerontological Nursing in the School of Nursing, said: "Learning about the estimated costs of care for any cancer is important in achieving shared decision making between patients, especially older adults who may utilize more healthcare services, and their providers."

Similarly, clinicians at the Wilmot Cancer Institute at the University of Rochester Medical Center are also using FAIR Health's oncology-focused SDM tools, including early-stage breast cancer and fast- and slow-growing prostate cancer. Dr. Allison Magnuson, DO, geriatric oncologist and Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine, said: "Our collaboration with FAIR Health signifies a bold leap forward in healthcare engagement. These tools facilitate shared decision making and have the potential to change how older adults and their family caregivers engage in their healthcare journey. This initiative aligns with our mission to provide patient-centered, age-friendly care in our multidisciplinary clinic so that every decision is informed, every care plan is personalized and every voice is heard."

Neuropsychologists at The Ohio State University Neuropsychology Clinic are using FAIR Health's SDM tools for conditions such as hip osteoarthritis, dialysis and type 2 diabetes, as well as TTC tools for Alzheimer's disease and related dementias, major depression and ADHD, supporting its ability to deliver personalized care to older adult patients. Christopher Nguyen, PhD, ABPP, Director of Neuropsychology in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health and Director of the Office of Geriatrics and Gerontology at The Ohio State University, stated: "The Ohio State University's participation in FAIR Health's initiative underscores our dedication to fostering a healthcare system that prioritizes patient-centered care. We're excited to help evaluate these groundbreaking tools that can help support clinicians in providing personalized, age-friendly care for older adult patients—truly focusing on what matters to our patients."

Emory University's Division of Geriatrics and Gerontology and one of the university's teaching hospitals, Grady Memorial Hospital, are using several of FAIR Health's SDM tools for primary care and palliative care conditions, including hip osteoarthritis and type 2 diabetes, as well as dialysis and nutrition options for seriously ill patients. Dr. Ugochi Ohuabunwa, MD, Chief of Geriatrics and Professor in the Department of Medicine, stated: "We are delighted to be working with FAIR Health on this exciting initiative for older adult patients. Using these shared decision-making tools in the clinical setting will offer valuable insights on healthcare decision making and how we, as clinicians, can improve our approaches to healthcare engagement with older adults and their families in line with age-friendly care."

This initiative builds on a foundation of prior work by FAIR Health, with funding from The New York Community Trust, the New York Health Foundation and The Fan Fox & Leslie R. Samuels Foundation. Under those prior grants, FAIR Health pioneered new SDM tools that combined evidence-based clinical decision aids with cost information powered by FAIR Health data for a set of conditions relevant for seriously ill patients and minority communities, as well as related educational resources for healthcare providers. Under a prior JAHF-funded planning grant, FAIR Health launched a set of new, user-friendly healthcare tools, including SDM tools for conditions such as hip osteoarthritis and fast-growing prostate cancer; TTC tools for conditions such as Alzheimer's disease and related dementias and heart failure; and educational resources for older adults and family caregivers on FAIR Health for Older Adults. The tools and resources were well received by patients, caregivers and healthcare providers. In early 2025, FAIR Health will launch a new SDM tool for Alzheimer's disease with contextualizing educational content and resources.

To access the free tools, educational content and resources on FAIR Health for Older Adults, visit fairhealtholderadults.org.

Institutions interested in using FAIR Health's tools and resources with their older patients can contact Gee Kim, FAIR Health Clinical and Research Outreach Liaison, at [email protected].

The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and Penn Medicine's Abramson Cancer Center are participating clinical sites. Nothing herein is to be construed as an endorsement by OSU or by Penn of any service or product.

About FAIR Health
FAIR Health is a national, independent nonprofit organization that qualifies as a public charity under section 501(c)(3) of the federal tax code. It is dedicated to bringing transparency to healthcare costs and health insurance information through data products, consumer resources and health systems research support. FAIR Health possesses the nation's largest collection of commercial healthcare claims data, which includes over 48 billion claim records and is growing at a rate of over 3 billion claim records a year. FAIR Health licenses its commercial data and data products—including benchmark modules, data visualizations, custom analytics and market indices—to commercial insurers and self-insurers, employers, providers, hospitals and healthcare systems, government agencies, researchers and others. Certified by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) as a national Qualified Entity, FAIR Health also receives data representing the experience of all individuals enrolled in traditional Medicare Parts A, B and D, which accounts for a separate collection of over 48 billion claim records; FAIR Health includes among the commercial claims data in its database, data on Medicare Advantage enrollees. FAIR Health can produce insightful analytic reports and data products based on combined Medicare and commercial claims data for government, providers, payors and other authorized users. FAIR Health's systems for processing and storing protected health information have earned HITRUST CSF certification and achieved AICPA SOC 2 Type 2 compliance by meeting the rigorous data security requirements of these standards. As a testament to the reliability and objectivity of FAIR Health data, the data have been incorporated in statutes and regulations around the country and designated as the official, neutral data source for a variety of state health programs, including workers' compensation and personal injury protection (PIP) programs. FAIR Health data serve as an official reference point in support of certain state balance billing laws that protect consumers against bills for surprise out-of-network and emergency services. FAIR Health also uses its database to power a free consumer website available in English and Spanish, which enables consumers to estimate and plan for their healthcare expenditures and offers a rich educational platform on health insurance. An English/Spanish mobile app offers the same educational platform in a concise format and links to the cost estimation tools. The website has been honored by the White House Summit on Smart Disclosure, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), URAC, the eHealthcare Leadership Awards, appPicker, Employee Benefit News and Kiplinger's Personal Finance. For more information on FAIR Health, visit fairhealth.org.

Contact:
Rachel Kent
Executive Director of Communications and Marketing
FAIR Health
646-396-0795
[email protected]

SOURCE FAIR Health