Pay-for-Performance Spotlight: OB/GYN Hosts Competition among Practices
Through the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH) provides clinicians and hospitals with a financial incentive for “meaningful use” of electronic health records. This article provides an overview of a creative way the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology increased enrollment in Patient Gateway.
This summer, the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology brought the spirit of competition into the mix to boost its numbers of patients enrolled in Patient Gateway.
OB/GYN set a goal for each of its nine practices to enroll at least 50 active patient accounts during a six-week period. Two practices, Brigham Obstetrics and Gynecology Group (BOGG) and the Center for Infertility and Reproductive Surgery (CIRS), had a goal of 30 because they already had high numbers for Patient Gateway. The winning practicewould receive a luncheon as the grand prize.
“We set a goal high enough to be a reach for each practice, but not so high that it wasn’t achievable,” said Jennifer Kay, administrator of Ambulatory Services for OB/GYN. “People became really engaged and excited about the competition.”
To provide additional support, the department hired a summer student to visit waiting rooms in each of the practices to help patients enroll in Patient Gateway while they were on site. Clinic staff also were encouraged to sign patients up.
In just two weeks, the department increased Patient Gateway enrollment by 120 active accounts.
Kay sent out weekly updates to help practices track their progress and compare their numbers to each other. Her emails included resources for staff to use in determining the best enrollment strategies.
At the end of the six weeks, the practices had collectively signed up nearly 400 patients with Gateway accounts. Maternal Fetal Medicine won the competition, with 120 patient enrollments.
“This was an easy competition to set up, and it really motivated staff,” said Kay.
A month after the competition, Sharon Vitti, vice president of Women’s Health and Ambulatory Services, attended a department meeting and shared a comment from a patient via Press Ganey. The patient described how easy it was to use Patient Gateway to contact the practice rather than the phone system.
“That compliment was nice for staff to hear because it showed the direct effect of our program on improving patients’ experiences,” Kay said.