From the Top

STRIVING TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE

• Adobe Care &

Wellness received its

URAC Accreditation in December 2021, making it the only independent case management company in Arizona commended for its commitment to promoting quality health services. • Adobe Care &

Wellness recently signed a joint venture with Desert Kidney

Association, creating a new area of service:

Adobe Kidney Care. • Adobe Care &

Wellness provides more than 40,000 lives with healthcare solutions and services. • Ambrose is a member of the Case

Management Society of America where she’s served as a board member and an active member of the Arizona Nursing

Association.

Jayme Ambrose: Changing the Face of Healthcare through Technology

Adobe Care & Wellness founder couples technology with human touch to address disparities in healthcare

by Niamh Sutton

Jayme Ambrose spent the first 15 years of her career as a psychiatric nurse. This experience had a profound influence on her approach to patient care and inspired her vision for a more effective healthcare model. She’s always asking, “How can we do it better?”

Ambrose explains that working as a psych nurse taught her to look beyond a patient’s physical diagnosis. “It’s vital to also examine patients’ home situations and mental state, if we hope to improve their health.” Consider worst-cast scenarios — is there working heat and AC; access to food; functioning toilets; struggles with depression?

She recalls her days managing home health services: “Because of regulations, we couldn’t address bigger issues impacting wellness. Our response was always reactive.”

Ambrose holds a master’s in nursing and earned her doctorate in nursing administration. For her doctorate thesis, she developed a holistic healthcare model addressing social determinants impacting health and quality of life. Her model utilizes data coupled with in-person care to deliver proactive health solutions and resources for at-risk individuals. Ambrose believed an integrated model could decrease the need for medications, hospital stays and ER visits, which would reduce healthcare costs. At her professor’s urging, she took her project from paper to reality.

In 2012, she joined The Beech Group as vice president of Clinical Services. While there, she had the opportunity to set up the pilot for her healthcare model. Ambrose implemented her program with a focus on reducing hospital readmission rates. Readmits dropped from 27% to 7%. With solid stats in hand, Ambrose was able to secure her first insurance company contract and others followed.

In 2017, The Beech Group gave Ambrose the opportunity to purchase her division. She borrowed from her 401(k) to fund the first year of payroll and expenses and launched Adobe Care & Wellness. Ambrose was joined by 12 division employees, embracing her plan to expand the company’s integrated case management services.

She knew they’d need software to drive programs. Ambrose directed IT to develop software for those providing services. She wanted an Electronic Medical Records system based on the flow of the at-home assessment process. Adobe needed to track tasks, measure outcomes and support the people delivering and receiving care.

IT developed a risk stratification tool that analyzes multiple factors, including the living situation. “Our data shows it takes 6.7 visits to our members’ homes until they’re stable. The more times we can touch someone, the less likely they are to have an acute episode,” Ambrose states.

Ambrose and team created a Transition of Care Program as part of case management. IT works closely with care providers on process, but the team of nurses, social workers, care navigators and transition specialists makes it work. When data revealed 73% of post-op patients failed to go to followup appointments, Adobe reduced it to 20% by calling and assisting with appointment booking.

As Adobe Care & Wellness embarks on its fifth year, Ambrose now leads a team of more than 200. “The model identifies what we need to do and who I need to hire to do it,” Ambrose explains. “A strong leader surrounds themselves with people who know more than they do. I need specialists in technology, finance, and clinical expertise.”

She ensures her growing team continues to understand and promote her vision. Ambrose presents the company’s history and mission as a part of new-hire training. It’s important to her that company culture and core values be an integral part of strategic growth.

While Ambrose remains responsible for the overall strategy decisions, she looks to her team for inspiration and direction and encourages autonomy and innovation — and says “yes” to any opportunity she feels will advance or produce a broader opportunity for the company. Adobe Care & Wellness is currently beta testing its MASLOW application, which identifies needs around social determinants and provides individuals access to resources.

The idea for the app stems from Ambrose’s request to IT for a tool giving social workers easy access to community resource information. IT ran with her idea, creating something bigger. MASLOW identifies challenges, using data from a detailed questionnaire to geolocate and direct users to local foodbanks, shelters and other social services. Once the questionnaire is complete, it also triggers a 48-hour follow-up communication from a social worker.

In addition to running her company, Ambrose is an adjunct professor for doctorate students at A.T. Stills and for RN to BSN, and master’s students at ASU. “There’s a major nursing shortage and a shortage of nursing instructors; teaching is something I can do to help,” she says.

Adobe Care & Wellness adobecw.com