Community Care Physicians is First Group in Capital Region to Receive NCQA's PPC®-PCMH™ Highest Recognition

LATHAM, NY (07/15/2009)(readMedia)-- Community Care Physicians, PC announced today that it is the first medical group in the Capital Region to have its primary care practices awarded Recognition by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) Physician Practice Connections® -- Patient-Centered Medical Home(TM) (PPC-PCMH) Program. Sixteen of Community Care's primary care locations earned Recognition at the highest of three possible levels of achievement. NCQA is a private, non-profit organization dedicated to measuring and improving health care quality. The Patient-Centered Medical Home program reflects the input of the American College of Physicians (ACP), American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP), American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), American Osteopathic Association (AOA) and others to identify and recognize practices that function as a patient-centered medical home.

PPC-PCMH measures certain aspects of care including access and communication; patient tracking and registry functions; care management; patient self-management support; electronic prescribing; test tracking; referral tracking; performance reporting and improvement; advanced electronic communications.

"This designation affirms Community Care Physicians' commitment to the delivery of innovative, quality, compassionate healthcare and highlights our dedication to the wellbeing of our patients," said Ronald Musto, MD, MPH, Executive Vice President of Community Care Physicians and practicing internist in Troy, NY. "Validation of our efforts by a nationally accredited source is not only reassuring, but it is increasingly required by insurers, employers, government and patients."

The Patient-Centered Medical Home is a model of care that focuses on strengthening the relationship between the patient and the physician by replacing short term episodic care with long-term relationships. With the medical home model, patients are active participants in their care and the primary care physician serves as the "home", or the office where patients go for the majority of their medical needs. The medical home model focuses on a team approach. Primary care physicians, specialists and the patient all communicate and work towards the same health care goal, through patient counseling, discussion of lifestyle changes, and the management of chronic conditions.

Community Care Physicians' Chief Medical Officer and practicing pediatrician, Barbara Morris, MD, states achieving this much sought after recognition demonstrates excellence in a variety of the many components required to practice evidence based medicine. "The cornerstone of our success in this endeavor is the use of a uniform electronic health record (EHR). Such a tool allows physicians to ease collection of patient centered medical data and easily share it with the patient and other providers within and outside of our medical group," says Dr. Morris.

The fragmentation of care that may otherwise result from unavailable or inaccessible medical reports or test results is eliminated, enhancing the orchestration of patient care.

"Community Care is proud to be a pioneer in the application of the EHR for the past five years. We are grateful to have this community leadership rewarded by NCQA as we move forward pioneering the true application of the principles of a Patient Center Medical Home-innovation, commitment and connection to our community," says Dr. Morris.

"It's time to renovate our inefficient healthcare system," says Dr. Musto. "The Patient-Centered Medical Home is a viable model that improves the quality of healthcare by enhancing communication and collaboration among patients, their doctors and the entire health care team. The ability to readily measure the effectiveness of care in our patient population allows Community Care to continuously improve our performance in healthcare delivery."

This medical home model is heavily favored by Congress. President Barack Obama said, in his address to the American Medical Association and in his statement to the American Academy of Family Physicians, that the medical home model should be integrated into any proposal to reform health care.

Shirish Parikh, MD, MBA, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Community Care, stresses that not only is Community Care meeting nationally recognized guidelines, but it is ever-striving to outperform these standards, driving new trends in healthcare.

"We are pleased to be the first in the Capital Region to receive Recognition by NCQA," says Dr. Parikh. "The increased focus on preventative care in the medical home model gives us an opportunity to embark on wellness programs, such as our fitness center (WORxKOUT), adolescent obesity programs, and patient education programs facilitated by health coaches. This NCQA Recognition reemphasizes our physicians' dedication and commitment to quality patient care."

About Community Care Physicians, PC

Community Care Physicians, P.C. is a physician-owned, physician-governed, multi-specialty medical group with more than 200 physicians and non-physician providers, located in four counties surrounding the Albany, New York greater Capital District. Community Care Physicians medical services include Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, Family Medicine, Aesthetic Laser, Audiology, Dermatology, Diabetic Education and Nutrition, General Surgery, Laboratory, Obstetrics & Gynecology, Occupational Medicine, Physical Therapy, Podiatry, Radiology, Radiation Oncology, Urgent Care, Urology. For more information, visit www.communitycare.com.

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Contact Alexis Musto, Marketing Manager at Community Care Physicians, PC, for more information by phone at 518-213-0322, by email at amusto@communitycare.com, or by fax at 518-782-3798. Ronald Musto, MD and Barbara Morris, MD are available for interviews.