According to a recent survey, more than one in eight Federally Qualified Medical Centers (FQHCs) are “firmly committed” to maintaining independence from hospital affiliations. Report Conducted by a Porter Research representative next generation healthcare. FQHC is different from other primary care centers and hospitals because they Access federal funding to increase access to care in marginalized communities.them Serve There are nearly 29 million patients each year.
However, a number of obstacles are challenging FQHC’s financial stability — including labor shortages, the expansion of Medicaid, evolving payment models and increasing regulatory requirements. Given these challenges, it is critical that FQHCs face closer collaboration, the report argues.
For this report, Porter Research gathered data from more than 50 executives from large and midsize FQHCs across the country to learn more about their organizations’ unique needs.
A portion of FQHC funding and reimbursement is tied to clinical quality and financial metrics, which are measured annually by the Health Resources and Services Administration. Unified Data System. The system provides insight into the overall quality of care provided by FQHC and the total cost of providing that care. Srinivas Velamoor, chief growth and strategy officer at NextGen, said the process is critical to the ability of medical centers to accurately report on the care they provide.
The data requirements are further complicated by FQHC’s unique positioning as the last-mile delivery entity for integrated healthcare in marginalized communities. That means they need a broader understanding of personal medical and behavioral health data, as well as data on patients’ social determinants of health, including housing status, financial status, social isolation, and access to food and transportation, Velamoor said.
To ensure that FQHC’s data needs are met, Velamoor recommends the following actions: simplify and expand interoperability and public data exchange programs, increase access to patient data catalogs, and accelerate collaboration with non-FQHC community organizations. He also suggested that FQHCs cooperate with each other.
“FQHC provides some of the most complex health care services in all outpatient care under one organization,” Velamoor said. “While some larger organizations have the resources to meet the needs of their populations, they do not necessarily have the perspective provided by collaboration. For those who lack resources, pooling capabilities can help them accelerate their ability to scale and develop capabilities, And address individual shortages.”
In addition, patient populations served by FQHC have similar socioeconomic characteristics and are less advantaged than patient populations served by private health systems. Velamoor said the collaboration between FQHCs allows them to learn from each other to meet the changing needs of the community.
“Collaboration also provides a safety net entity for vulnerable populations in key postcodes that can more effectively ensure proper coverage across the health continuum,” he said. “This requires not only working with other FQHCs, but also with non-FQHC community organizations that can provide visibility into patient and community needs.”
The report found that 72% of participants are willing to partner with like-minded organisations, including other FQHCs, to pool data and gather additional insights.
NextGen piloted an example of such a collaboration last year, when it roll out NextGen Community Health Partnership. The initiative aims to provide FQHC with data benchmarking, comparative analysis and reporting services, as well as a forum for members to share best practices for improving community health.
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