Tonic Health Contracts with Kern Medical and Meridian Healthcare Partners to Transform the Collection of Incentive Reporting Metrics

PALO ALTO, Calif., May 16, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Tonic Health, the leading electronic patient data collection and analytics platform among large healthcare organizations, has contracted with Kern Medical, in partnership with Meridian Healthcare Partners, to reimagine the patient experience and streamline data collection to meet California's 1115 Medicaid Waiver goals for the Public Hospital Redesign and Incentives in Medi-Cal (PRIME) program. 

PRIME provides funding to report and improve performance on multiple quality indicators intended to transform the delivery of care in public healthcare systems. Over the five-year program, nearly $3.8 billion in federal funds will be available to all of California's participating hospitals.

Kern Medical enlisted the help of Meridian Healthcare Partners to plan, implement, and operate its PRIME program. Every six months, Kern Medical reports on over 50 PRIME-related metrics. During the program's first year, PRIME funds will initially be earned by reporting on each metric. However, during the course of the five-year program, a portion of the metrics will transition from "pay-for-reporting" to "pay-for-performance" where payment will be based on meeting specific targets. Many of these metrics require screening and collecting information directly from patients, which historically has been done through a manual, paper-based process that is both cumbersome to manage and costly to execute. Kern Medical partnered with Meridian Healthcare Partners to sift through all of its standard screening and intake forms to remove redundancies and create streamlined questionnaires to be deployed through Tonic.

Tonic's innovative electronic platform allows Kern Medical to collect patient assessments and screenings at the point of care using iPads as well as between clinic visits on mobile devices or computers at home. Tonic's visually engaging interface and high ease of use also boosts completion rates among the vulnerable populations that PRIME is designed to help most. Real time alerts notify staff of abnormal screenings and allow for instant intervention, if necessary.

Additionally, Tonic's automated patient data collection platform includes a tracking system for screenings and assessments to ensure compliance with preventive and chronic care management metrics.  Kern Medical estimates that a significant number of its total performance targets will be collected through Tonic, particularly those related to the integration of behavioral health into the ambulatory care setting.

"We are excited to collaborate with Tonic Health, which has become the industry standard for simplifying the complexity of collecting data from patients," said Tyler Whitezell, Vice President of Administrative Services at Kern Medical. "We see Tonic as an invaluable tool for helping us improve the patient experience and enhance the quality of care to all of our patients, which will ultimately lead to hitting our PRIME performance goals."

About Kern Medical:
Kern Medical is a 222‐bed acute care teaching hospital located in central California.  Each year, more than 230 residents, fellows and medical students enroll in its UCLA-affiliated training programs. Kern Medical offers a range of primary and specialty services including high-risk pregnancy care, trauma, inpatient psychiatric services integrated with county mental health programs, and a growing network of outpatient clinics providing personalized, patient-centered care.  As a safety-net public hospital, Kern Medical provides innovative and compassionate care to all patients, regardless of their ability to pay.

About Meridian Healthcare Partners:
Meridian Healthcare Partners was formed to bring power to healthcare organizations through collaboration, trust, and sustainability.  Meridian includes seasoned healthcare executives who have a commitment to excellence and are dedicated in assisting organizations reach their maximum potential.  Meridian focuses on helping its partners with improvements in revenue cycle, labor productivity, physician enterprise performance, operational efficiencies, profitable growth, and managed care-contracting strategies.

About Tonic Health
Tonic Health (www.tonicforhealth.com) is the leading cloud-based patient data collection and payments platform among large enterprise healthcare organizations. Tonic offers patients and staff an engaging, interactive experience for capturing any type of health information or any type of health payment from any device in any setting, plus real-time analysis to make that information actionable when and where it's needed most.

SOURCE Tonic Health

Related Links

http://www.tonicforhealth.com