The QI Hub project includes a focus on patient and community engagement opportunities. Participating CoMs were directed to develop and implement a Patient and Community Engagement Plan to 1) integrate patient and family perspectives into all activities of the QI Hub project, and 2) establish linkages to community organizations to provide enhanced access to the full array of services necessary for patient centered care. Participating CoMs have approached this work in different ways as outlined below.
Most CoMs established new Patient and Family Advisory Councils (PFACs) to capture patient and family perspectives and integrate them into their project activities. Other CoMs worked with existing organizational PFACs, conducted patient interviews or fielded surveys. Most CoMs initially engaged patient advisors about their lived experiences, inquiring about barriers and opportunities they face, and requesting suggestions on potential QI interventions. Over time, patient advisors’ roles have expanded to providing feedback on proposed PDSA cycles and various topics of interest to practices, reviewing quality improvement metrics, developing patient journey maps, preparing materials by patients for patients, participating in Go-See Gemba Walks at practice sites, joining practice coaching calls and appearing in educational videos to raise awareness of various topics.
CoM | Region | Approach | Composition | Current Focus Areas |
|---|---|---|---|---|
CWRU & NEOMED | Northeast Ohio | Established a new PFAC. | 12 patient advisors recruited from participating spoke sites | Patient advisors provide feedback on practice PDSA cycles and practice-requested feedback areas. |
OSU | Central Ohio | Engages with the existing organizational PFACs and conducts interviews with Medicaid patients from spoke sites. | 16 patients across 5 organizational PFACs and 10 patients from spoke sites have been recruited to participate in interviews. | Patient advisors provide feedback on lived experiences with hypertension, patient education materials, barriers to healthcare, follow-up timing, and their interest in lifestyle modification resources. |
OU | Southeast Ohio | Established a new PFAC. | 10 patient advisors recruited from participating spoke sites. | Patient advisors provide feedback on topics, including nutrition challenges, food access, and support needs in managing diabetes. Patient advisor engagement activities also include the creation of videos around living with diabetes in Southeastern Ohio. |
UC | Southeast Ohio | Established a new PFAC. Many Medicaid members with hypertension are unable to join the PFAC due to other responsibilities, so the UC Team created a "pulse survey" to capture additional experiences of social drivers of health and preferences for education from patients in primary care, at pharmacy spoke sites, or in the community. | 20 patient advisors recruited from participating spoke sites | Patient advisors provided feedback on barriers and opportunities to improve processes and develop materials; developed patient journey map; participated in clinic GoSees, helped to develop a blood pressure log that is used across our spoke sites and participated in educational videos. |
UT | Northwest Ohio | Established a new PFAC and engaged members through a three-tiered model to center patient voices in care improvement. | 11 patient advisors recruited from participating spoke sites | Patient advisors share personal insights to shape patient-centered care, co-design tools and resources that empower patients and families, provide real-time feedback on education materials and services, lead community outreach and peer engagement efforts and support internal improvement through training, storytelling, and surveys. |
CoMs have worked to address patient advisor identified barriers and gaps in various ways. Most notably by establishing partnerships with relevant community-based organizations and seeking to establish enhanced access to the full array of services necessary for patient centered care. Most commonly, CoMs are working with various community partners, including managed care organizations, academic institutions, local health departments, food banks, pharmacies and free care clinics, among many others.
| CoM | Region | Focus Areas | Community Partners |
|---|---|---|---|
| CWRU & NEOMED | Northeast Ohio | Collaborating with community partners to co-design nutrition security tests of change with participating practices, connecting Medicaid patients living with diabetes who are screened positive for food insecurity to sustainable nutrition services. |
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| OSU | Central Ohio | Working to establish partnerships with community organizations and by participating in community events. |
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| OU | Southeast Ohio | Working with community partners to address food insecurity, scaling up DSMES and CGM spread. |
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| UC | Southwest Ohio | UC CoM established a Community Advisory Board of organizations with a shared mission and commitment to hypertension control and/or lessening social drivers of health relevant to reducing the burden of cardiovascular disease in the region. |
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| UT | Northwest Ohio | UT CoM partners with community-based organizations to extend care beyond the clinic. Through these collaborations, UToledo is building bridges between healthcare and community resources, ensuring patients have access to the tools, relationships, and opportunities needed to thrive. |
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