Strength In Numbers

Tracy Morton, Program Manager II

Strength In Numbers, the theme of this year’s National Conference of State Flex Programs, was clearly illustrated this past week in moving and motivational messages. The conference, held in Bethesda, Maryland, brought together the 45 state grantees of the Medicare Rural Hospital Flexibility (Flex) Programs to share their stories and hear from national experts on transforming quality improvement, building financial and operational improvement and supporting health system development for the 1,329 critical access hospitals (CAHs) throughout the country. The impact of the National Flex Program goes beyond the 1,329 communities where the CAHs reside to the other rural communities captured in the CAH’s market share, to the millions of Americans that call rural home and to even their suburban and urban families and friends who count on, and expect, quality health care for their loved ones. The 45 State Flex Programs individually and nationally impact this expectation. Talk about Strength In Numbers.

High quality health care in our country is becoming an expectation, evidenced by national initiatives such as Partnerships for Patients and the Medicare Beneficiary Quality Improvement Project (MBQIP). The federal government is also trying to control the cost of health care provision, as well as the cost of the health care system, with the coupling of quality and access to care through accountable care organizations (ACOs). While the hospitals need to be thinking about process and reporting changes for quality improvement, care transitions and patient accountability, they also need to think about moving from a volume-based to a value-based payment system. As Eric Shell from Stroudwater Associates pointed out, “rural hospitals need to think about the Triple Aim being played out in the market place, even when the market place doesn’t realize this is occurring”. Well, if this isn’t daunting, then I’m not sure what is.

The “message” at the conference wasn’t negative; it was inspirational. It was Strength In Numbers. It was about coming together; not trying to do the work alone. It was about sharing resources, best practices and stories; about being a catalyst for change and a change agent; thinking strategically about the State Flex Programs and the National Flex Program. The conference was about setting priorities and maximizing the impact of each of the 45 State Flex Programs on the 1,329 CAHs and their rural communities and partners. Because at the end of the day, and at the end of the conference, it came down to doing the right thing; about providing quality, affordable and accessible health care to the rural residents of America.