FAIRVIEW PARTNERS
CONTRACTS
WITH
Blue Cross Blue Shield
Fairview Partners and Blue Cross Blue Shield have recently formed a partnership to serve Blue Plus Minnesota Senior Health Options (MSHO) and Minnesota Senior Care Plus (MSC+) members residing in long term care and assisted living facilities where there is a Fairview on-site provider team. This new agreement, which is effective September 1, 2014, does not include Hennepin County enrollees at this time because Blue Plus is not currently open in this county. Blue Plus refers to their MSHO product as Secure Blue and their MSC+ product as Blue Advantage.
Fairview on-site teams have already been following Blue Plus members in non Hennepin County facilities but these members were not able to receive the full benefits of the Fairview Partners program such as access to Fairview Partners care coordinators, an on-site orthopedic physician’s assistant and a medication therapy management pharmacist. These services will now be available to those members that choose to receive their care from the Fairview on-site team.
Fairview Partners facilities benefitting from this new agreement include: Ebenezer Ridges Campus, Augustana Apple Valley, Emerald Crest of Burnsville, Keystone Assisted Living of Prior Lake, Birchwood Arbors Campus, Ecumen Parmly LifePointes, Ecumen North Branch, Golden Living Rush City, Lakeside Medical Center, Guardian Angels, Elim Care and Rehab, Caley House Assisted Living, Sterling Pointe Assisted Living, Milaca Care and Rehab and Country Meadows Assisted Living.
One year ago we sent out a survey to evaluate the number of our partner facilities that were familiar with the Minnesota Immunization Information Connection (MIIC) and also utilizing this great tool. While most of you were familiar with it, only half used it for resident reporting and another 58% used it for staff reporting. Fairview Partners is promoting the use of MIIC, and it is our expectation that all of our partner facilities will report into MIIC all immunizations that are given by them. In an effort to support this expectation and to educate all of us on how to use MIIC and to get set up we have arranged for Kelly Fogarty, a coordinator with MIIC, to give us a presentation on the use of MIIC, and also help us through signing up or in many cases renewing the user agreement to utilize this tool.
As a refresher, MIIC is a confidential, computerized system that collects immunization records from several different sources. The Minnesota Department of Health defines it as: “a network of regional immunization services – health care providers, public health agencies, health plans, and schools working together to prevent disease and improve immunization levels.”
Mount Olivet Careview Home has agreed to host the training at their facility so it will be centrally located for most of you. We hope that you will attend this informational and visual presentation to hear about how easy this will make your immunization reporting once you are set up.
The details of the training are as follows: MIIC Information Session
Held at: Mount Olivet Careview Home - Chapel Monday, August 18th @ 2:00 p.m.
5517 Lyndale Ave. So., Minneapolis 55419
Use the door located at: 603 West 55th Street South. There is a Visitor parking lot across the street from that entrance.
Please RSVP by August 14th to Carol Lorier, Fairview Partners Senior Operations Analyst at
clorier1@fairview.org.
FAIRVIEW GERIATRIC SERVICES’
QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PROJECT
In our continuing efforts to provide the highest quality of care, Fairview Geriatric Services (FGS) – the provider group that provides on-site care for Fairview Partners members - has started a new quality improvement project. This year they are focusing on ensuring that our patient’s immunizations are accurately tracked and updated. They are looking at updating influenza, Tdap, and pneumococcal immunizations to current recommendations.
As you know as a health care facility, you are required to track immunizations. You are already doing a great job ensuring administration of influenza vaccinations. We have found that many elders living in your facilities do not have current Tdap immunizations. This Tentatnus, diptheria and pertussis vaccine is important as pertussis (whooping cough) is a disease on the rise in the United States. It is quite harmful for frail elderly patients and fatal in infants and many of the facilities that we work at have attached day care centers on their campuses.
The nurse practitioners and FGS staff are working with facility staff to obtain current patient immunization records through the facility charts, current Fairview EPIC charts, and the Minnesota Immunization Information Connection (MIIC). They are reconciling all the immunization records listed above, making clinical decisions about the immunizations that the patients need, then working with the patients and or patient family members and facility staff to ensure patients receive the needed immunization.
FGS is excited about this project as they see they are leading the way in geriatric care. They understand this may be difficult and cause extra time on your end as well, but acknowledge the great efforts you are all taking to ensure great patient care and community-wide immunity. If you have any questions or concerns about this project, please contact Lisa Jensen, Fairview Geriatric Services Team Coordinator at 952-914-1733 or ljensen5@fairview.org.
Benedictine Health Center at Innsbruck (BHCI) became a Fairview Partners member effective July 1, 2014. BHCI is located in New Brighton, a region where Fairview Partners did not have a presence, yet there are Fairview Clinics located around and near the facility. This new partnership will allow Fairview on-site teams to serve Fairview patients who live in the northern suburbs who move into the facility for a short term or long term stay coming from the community, a Fairview clinic or hospital.
BHCI is well known for excellent post-acute care, physical rehabilitation, long term care and memory care, and has been serving seniors in the north metro area for almost 50 years. In 1999, BHCI became a member of the Benedictine Health System, a non-profit Catholic organization entrusted with advancing the health care ministry of the Benedictine Sisters of Duluth. Current services offered include:
Outpatient and In-Home Rehabilitation.
Post-Acute Care, Memory Care and Long Term Care.
Clinical Services that include registered nurses, dieticians, lymphedema certified staff, and wound care specialists.
Integrative Health & Healing Services - Aromatherapy, comfort massage, doll therapy, healing touch, and music therapy (with personalized MP3 players).
Mobility Courtyard, part of the Healing Gardens, speeds up the healing process by offering therapy in a space that includes a car, various surfaces, and practical tasks to complete outdoors.
Care Coordination through the ABLE (Assisting Better Lives for Elders) program, in partnership with St. John the Baptist Catholic Church. The ABLE nurse works closely with a core group of trained parish volunteers to meet the physical, emotional, educational and spiritual needs of parishioners.
Welcome Benedictine Health Center at Innsbruck to our Fairview Partners program!
NEW
LONG TERM CARE FACILITY
FAIRVIEW GERIATRIC SERVICES’
NURSE PRACTITIONER CHANGES
We recently said goodbye to one of our nurse practitioners/nurse practitioner supervisor as she began her retirement on Friday, August 1st. Linda Wenzel had been with Fairview Partners since the program began and she will be greatly missed. We wish Linda and her family well as she moves into the next phase of her life.
LEEANN OLSON, RN, GNP
“I believe in treating the whole person; Body, mind and spirit.”
Fortunately, Leeann Olson has accepted the nurse practitioner supervisor position for the metro area. Leeann will also have a caseload of Fairview patients in our partner facilities.
Leeann joined Fairview seven years ago and has many years of experience working with the geriatric population starting at the young age of 14 when she became one of the first candy stripers at the skilled nursing facility in her home town. After her candy striper work, Leeann was a nursing assistant for 13 years before going back to school. She then worked as a nurse in long term and transitional care and after some time she went into palliative medicine in an acute care setting.
Leeann’s professional interests include: Parkinson’s and other related disorders, pain management, dementia, geriatric care, rehab and palliative care.
Did you know that enrolling your residents into Fairview Partners offers additional benefits that would not normally be covered through traditional Medicare? Additionally, for skilled nursing facilities, residents are able to enroll during any month of the year vs. waiting for Open Enrollment in the fall.
Benefits of becoming a Fairview Partners member include: A dedicated on-site care team for their primary care needs
Access to the 100-day Medicare day period with no hospital stay, as opposed to the traditional three-day hospital stay that is required under Medicare
Access to on-site orthopedic visits for falls prevention, on-site x-rays, fracture management for non-surgical fracture care, surgical referrals and arthritis management for chronic, degenerative arthritis
Access to a Fairview pharmacist for medication therapy management or general questions or concerns about medications
Access to a Fairview Partners Care Coordinator who will help the residents navigate the system through any transitions of care they may have
If you have any questions or potential referrals, please contact your Fairview Partners Education and Enrollment Specialist. Or call Fairview Partners at 952-914-1720.
FAIRVIEW PARTNERS
OFFERS ADDITIONAL
For more than five years, a Fairview Partners case manager Lynn, has been volunteering her time walking the resident dog at Edina Care Center. Every Friday, in below zero temperatures as well as very hot summer days Lynn spends time with Peppie. Edina Care Center staff, and especially Peppie, look forward to seeing Lynn each Friday!
Edina Care Center has been a member of the Fairview Partners program since Fairview Partners was formed 18 years ago. Recently, Dennis DeCosta joined Edina Care Center as its new administrator. Under Dennis’ new leadership, Edina Care Center recently had a successful Minnesota Department of Health survey. Edina Care Center has also achieved a 4 out of 5 Star Rating by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Edina Care Center continually evaluates their facility operations as part of its quality assurance program. It recently renovated its transitional care unit and work has started on the remaining two neighborhoods in the building. Volunteers of America-Edina Care and Rehabilitation Center measures its success in positive change in the lives of individuals and communities it serves.
