16 minute read
IN THE NEWS
Providing staff, physicians, and patients with relevant & up to date information
Bassem Ghobrial, MD
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Introducing Bassem Ghobrial, MD
Dr. Ghobrial is a board-certified general surgeon. After finishing his general surgery residency at San Joaquin General Hospital, he completed a 1-year fellowship in advanced colon and rectal/ minimally invasive surgery followed by a 1-year fellowship in a ACGME-accredited colon and rectal surgery fellowship at the Colon and Rectal Clinic of Orlando. Dr. Ghobrial has joined San Joaquin General Hospital as full-time faculty and is accepting referrals from local medical professionals at 468.6153.
New Public Health Building Dedicated to Jack Williams, MD
The construction of the new San Joaquin County Public Health Services’ building has been complete. The office block has been dedicated to Dr. Jack J. Williams, Director of San Joaquin Local Health District, the last independent health district in the United States, for 26 years. Dr. Williams was a member of SJMS/CMA for three decades and was president in 1979. He served on several committees, including Public Health, Rural Health, Migrant Health, and School Health during his tenure.
Nicole Friel, M.D., has been named the medical director of sports medicine at Shriners Children’s Northern California
Dr. Friel has been a team physician for multiple high school and collegiate teams and she has worked with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Chicago White Sox and Chicago Bulls. Dr. Friel has published on a range of topics, including the role of ACL injury in the development of post-traumatic knee osteoarthritis, trends in shoulder stabilization surgical technique and the treatment of fracture in patellar dislocation. The sports medicine program at Shriners offers the full range of
Jack Williams, MD
sports medicine treatments and rehabilitation. Our surgeons offer some of the latest, innovative procedures, such as osteochondral allografts and the MACI procedure for cartilage repair. We treat anterior cruciate ligament tears, Achilles tendon ruptures, discoid meniscus and acromioclavicular joint separation, among other sports-related conditions and injuries. Our sports medicine program has onsite occupational, physical and sports therapists. To contact sports medicine at Northern California Shriners Hospital, call (916) 453-2191. Nicole Friel, M.D.
Mary Claire Manske, M.D., has been named medical director of hand and upper extremity at Shriners Children’s Northern California.
Shriners Children’s orthopedics service takes care of patients with congenital anomalies, brachial plexus birth injuries and other conditions of the hands, arms and shoulders. The hospital has a pediatric hand fellowship program, one of just five such programs in the country and it is involved in many research endeavors, local and collaborative with other centers.
In becoming director of the hand program, Dr. Manske follows in the footsteps of her father, Paul Manske, M.D., a recognized authority on tendon healing, who was director of hand surgery at Shriners Children’s St. Louis from 1973 to 2011.
Dr. Manske has published on topics including the use of botulinum toxin in brachial plexus birth injury to prevent contracture and buy time for healing and the best technique for supracapsular nerve repair in brachial plexus birth injury. To contact the hand and upper extremity physicians at Shriners Children’s call (916) 453-2191.
Shriners Children’s Research Improves Brachial Plexus Birth Injury Surgery
Shriners Children’s Northern California frequently has unique opportunities to impact clinical orthopedics given the sheer volume of patients it sees and its connections with other major pediatrics hospitals. Take Claire Manske, M.D., and the study she reported on the best approach to brachial plexus birth injury surgery. She asked, what is the best surgical approach to repairing the suprascapular nerve and restore external shoulder rotation in a brachial plexus birth injury? Is it a nerve transfer or a nerve graft procedure? She used data from a large, multicenter database of experience at six major hospitals (J Bone Joint Surg. 2020;102:298-308). Prior to her report, surgeons tended to prefer the nerve graft procedure or the nerve transfer, for reasons that the surgical procedure seemed cleaner and easier. But she found that the nerve transfer procedure gave the patients a higher likelihood of recovering functional strength. “This has definitely changed my clinical practice,” Dr. Manske said.
SHARE YOUR PASSION PROJECT!
Each year our members spend many hours, donating their time and talents to projects and organizations both in our community and abroad. We’d love to learn more about your passion projects and may even highlight you in an article we are working on for next year. Please complete the survey that will be sent to your email in December. Not sure we have your proper email address? Email Lisa Richmond at Lisa@sjcms.org.
And it has significantly advanced the care those little patients with the injury receive.
HPSJ Announces $15 Million Investment to Locally Address Homelessness
Health Plan of San Joaquin (HPSJ), the local health plan that serves more than 400,000 Medi-Cal beneficiaries in San Joaquin and Stanislaus Counties, has announced a $15 million investment to reduce and prevent homelessness across the community. Through this investment, HPSJ will partner to help fund the construction of shelters and permanent supportive housing units for those experiencing homelessness in cities that include Stockton, Tracy, and Modesto. Additionally, HPSJ’s investment will support innovative street medicine programs that position health care providers to directly deliver care outdoors to individuals who are experiencing homelessness. “This investment, unanimously and enthusiastically approved by our governing Commission, will allow HPSJ and our partners to better meet the needs of our most vulnerable members while addressing challenges related to homelessness in our community,” says HPSJ’s Chief Executive Officer, Michael Schrader. “HPSJ has proudly served the Central Valley for more than 25 years,” Schrader continues, “and we are strong in our commitment to improve the health of our community through collaboration on the launch of these new housing and homelessness initiatives.”
Health Plan of San Joaquin Steps in as DHCS Sunsets the Value Based Payments Program (VBP)
Providers have an opportunity to receive additional reimbursements for delivering to HPSJ members preventive care services such as mammograms, well child visits for age-appropriate testing and immunizations, prenatal and postpartum care, blood lead screening, diabetes and persistent asthma care, and much more. From July 1, 2022-June 30, 2023, HPSJ will continue to reimburse the VBP program that DHCS discontinued. The extended VBP program continues at the sole discretion of HPSJ, which requests claims be submitted in a timely manner. For more about the VBP program, including the continuing measures along with billing and diagnosis codes and updates, bookmark www.hpsj.com/value-based-payments/.
Enhancing Access to Quality Health Care – Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Health Plan of San Joaquin’s (HPSJ) Cultural and Linguistics team recently implemented video remote interpreting (VRI) and over-the-phone interpretation (OPI) services with two Federal Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) – Community Medical Centers (CMC) and Stanislaus County Health Services – plus FQHC look-alike San Joaquin Health Centers (previously San Joaquin County Clinics). A combined 168,366 HPSJ members now have access to VRI and OPI as well as American Sign Language services through these HPSJ provider partners, increasing language access by 33% at CMC where there are 101,129 HPSJ members.
Breast Cancer Screening Pilot with Community Medical Centers (CMC)
Health Plan of San Joaquin (HPSJ) and Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) staff are in regular contact through the Provider Partnership Program (PPP) to develop best practices that remove members’ barriers to care and improve their health outcomes. In a recent meeting, HPSJ’s Community Medical Centers (CMC) partners mentioned they wanted help with their Breast Cancer Screening rates. Together they developed a pilot project. HPSJ staff drafted a template letter for CMC to send, with a completed mammography work order, up to 300 of its 4,200 HPSJ patients eligible for Breast Cancer Screening. Together, HPSJ and CMC want to make it as easy as possible for a patient to obtain their order, then go to the location of their choice and at a time convenient for them. HPSJ and their CMC partners believe sending a completed copy of the mammogram order directly to the HPSJ patient can be a practical step to removing a barrier for the patient to get their important breast cancer screening. If all 300 patients in the pilot receive breast cancer screenings, CMC can increase their current testing rates by 7%. If successful, in 2023 HPSJ will recommend this pilot as a Best Practice to other FQHCs and participants in the PPP program.
Doctors Medical Center, Doctors Hospital of Manteca and Emanuel Medical Center have all received the 2022 Honor Roll Award for Maternity Care from the California Health and Human Services (CHHS) Agency, Hospital Quality Institute and Cal Hospital Compare.
IN THE NEWS
108 hospitals have been recognized on the 2022 Maternity Honor Roll. These hospitals met or surpassed the statewide target aimed at reducing births via cesarean section (C-section) in first-time mothers with low-risk pregnancies. In 2015, the CHHS Agency began recognizing hospitals that meet the statewide target of C-sections for low-risk births through its Maternity Honor Roll. This year’s award reflects calendar year 2021 hospital discharge and birth certificate data from California hospitals that offer maternity services and participate in the California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative’s Maternal Data Center.
Every year, more than 400,000 babies are born in California and childbirth is the No. 1 reason for hospitalization in the U.S. and California.
Doctors Hospital of Manteca Earns Breast MRI Accreditation
Doctors Hospital of Manteca has been awarded a three-year term of accreditation in breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) as the result of a recent review by the American College of Radiology (ACR). MRI of the breast, when used with mammography and breast ultrasound, can be a very useful diagnostic tool. Recent research has found that MRI can locate some small breast lesions sometimes not seen by mammography. It can also help detect breast cancer in women with breast implants and in younger women who tend to have dense breast tissue.
The ACR gold seal of accreditation represents the highest level of image quality and patient safety. It is awarded only to facilities meeting ACR Practice Parameters and Technical Standards after a peer-review evaluation by board-certified physicians and medical physicists who are experts in the field. Image quality, personnel qualifications, adequacy of facility equipment, quality control procedures and quality assurance programs are assessed. The findings are reported to the ACR Committee on Accreditation, which subsequently provides the practice with a comprehensive report that can be used for continuous practice improvement.
Antonio Coirin, M.D., general and bariatric surgeon at Doctors Hospital of Manteca, hit a special milestone in his career. Dr. Coirin has now performed 2,500 robotic surgeries on the da Vinci Surgical System. He celebrated the milestone with the team at Doctors Hospital of Manteca. Congratulations, Dr. Coirin.
Dr. Coirin has been practicing in the Central Valley for more than 30 years. He is a proctor for the da Vinci Surgical System and trains surgeons locally and across the country in general and bariatric surgery.
Providing staff, physicians, and patients with relevant & up to date information
2,500 Robotic Surgeries
Annual Service Awards
Doctors Hospital of Manteca Employees Recognized at Annual Service Awards
Doctors Hospital of Manteca is proud to celebrate milestone service awards every year for its employees. The hospital recently recognized more than 30 employees for their service, ranging from 5 years to 30 years. “I would like to extend a heartfelt thank you and congratulations to this years’ service award recipients. This is such a special opportunity for us to recognize our employees for their invaluable contributions to Doctors Hospital of Manteca and their many years of service,” said Eleze Armstrong, CEO of Doctors Hospital of Manteca. “We have team members who are celebrating 20, 25 and 30 years of service. What a wonderful testament to the dedication of our employees and their longstanding commitment to making sure we provide quality, compassionate care in the communities we serve.” Magy Cortes (Lab Supervisor) and Terri Locke-Barton (Registration Associate) were both recognized for 30 years of service. Magy was hired on April 6, 1992, and Terri was hired on July 6, 1992.
Doctors Hospital of Manteca Bariatrics Team Presents at ACS Safety Conference
The bariatrics team at Doctors Hospital of Manteca had the special honor of presenting during this year’s American College of Surgeons (ACS) Quality and Safety Conference, which was held in Chicago. The team was 1 of only 13 from across the country selected to present. Congratulations to Erin Bashaw and Amy Briggs for their incredible work on this project. Their research was selected for the virtual poster session because the hospital has created a unique surgical service line that promotes access to care and demonstrates high quality outcomes while promoting health to an underserved population that would be denied elective surgery based on size. The results of the team’s retrospective review demonstrated that High BMI Weight Loss Surgery can be safely performed at a small community hospital with a specialized team and dedicated equipment for patients of size.
St. Joseph’s Medical Center (SJMC) received a $480K grant from The Antone E. & Marie F. Raymus Foundation to fund pediatric related equipment. This grant will cover the cost of a neonatal transport isolette, five fetal monitors and carts, and five handheld ultrasounds. SJMC is proud of the partnership it has formed with the Raymus Foundation, and the impact it is having across several departments for our youngest community members.
St. Joseph’s Medical Center Receives $480K Grant
Pathways Community HUB Launched in San Joaquin County to Address Health Disparities in Underserved Populations
In August, the Community Foundation of San Joaquin, Dignity Health - St. Joseph’s Medical Center, and partners announced a new partnership with Pathways Community HUB InstituteSM (PCHI) to address barriers to health experienced by so many
individuals and families in San Joaquin County, including lack of housing, employment, or inadequate access to certain medical and behavioral health services. PCHI is a national nonprofit that partners with hospitals, clinics, health plans, community-based organizations, and community health workers (CHW) to identify socially disadvantaged patients and connect them to appropriate providers and services. Using an outcome-based payment approach, CHWs work with individuals to help remove physical and socioeconomic barriers to achieve optimal health.
St. Joseph’s Medical Center Holds Blessing of the Rigs for Local First Responders
Dignity Health St. Joseph’s Medical Center (SJMC) held their inaugural Blessing of the Rigs event on Friday, October 28, 2022, National First Responders Day. SJMC offered a county-wide invitation to all city and county fire, police, sheriff and highway patrol departments, and county ambulance companies to attend. Festivities entailed a drive-thru interfaith blessing of the vehicles and first responders, which also included canine units and motorcycles.
Nearly 100 first responders attended, with Chaplains from the Spiritual Services Department performing the blessings for the first responders and their respective rigs. In addition to the blessing, each first responder received lunch and a token to show appreciation from SJMC.
Kaiser Permanente Medicare Health Plan in California Among the Nation’s Best
Kaiser Permanente’s Medicare health plan in California is consistently among the highest performing in the nation for clinical care and patient experience Tammy Shaff Kaiser Permanente’s Medicare health plan in California is once again among the nation’s best for providing high-quality, seamless care, and outstanding service to its Medicare health plan members. The Kaiser Permanente Medicare health plan in California received 5 out of 5 stars, the highest rating possible, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) annual Star Quality Ratings for 2023. This is the 12th straight year Kaiser Permanente’s Medicare health plan in California has been rated 5 out of 5 stars. “Kaiser Permanente is proud to be consistently rated among the best in the nation for providing high-quality care and service to our Medicare health plan members - and all of our members - throughout Northern California,” said Carrie Owen Plietz, FACHE, president of Kaiser Permanente’s Northern California region. “This 5-star rating reflects the unwavering commitment of our physicians, care teams and staff to keeping our members leading healthy and productive lives.” The CMS Medicare Part C (health plan) and Part D (drug plan) 5-Star Quality Rating system is designed to help people compare health and drug plans based on quality and performance. Plans that receive 5 out of 5 stars in the annual ratings are recognized as excellent. Plans that receive 4 out of 5 stars are above average. Every year, CMS rates all Medicare Advantage health plans (Parts C and D) on multiple facets of care and service, including chronic conditions management, health maintenance, patient experience, customer service, and pharmacy services. Kaiser Permanente’s star ratings demonstrate the value of our integrated health care delivery system, which brings a myriad of services together, in many cases all under one roof, and puts our patients at the center of care.
Blessing of the Rigs
Tom McKenzie, M.D. Member since 1991
REIMBURSEMENT HELP: Members receive one-onone assistance from CMA’s reimbursement experts, who have recouped $33 million from payors on behalf of CMA physicians in the past 12 years. These monies represent actual physician reimbursements that would have likely gone unpaid without CMA intervention.
COVID-19: CMA understands that many physician practices are struggling in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak. We are working closely with state and federal lawmakers to ensure physician practices remain viable, and that physician networks remain robust amid the financial uncertainty created by the COVID-19 crisis.
TELEHEALTH: Telehealth services have proven to be a critical tool for physicians so they can safely provide care to those who need it during the COVID-19 public health emergency. CMA has worked to ensure that government agencies understand the regulatory flexibilities necessary so that physicians can continue serving patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. From telehealth flexibility and payment parity, to waivers on privacy and security requirements to expedite the incorporation of telehealth into practice workflows, CMA has been at the table making sure policymakers understand the needs of physicians and their patients.
PHYSICIAN WELL-BEING: CMA believes physician well-being and professional fulfillment are critical factors in maintaining patient access to quality care, and we must address this challenge at the organizational and systemic level. CMA’s Wellness Program launched Care 4 Caregivers Now in March 2020 to provide physicians with one-on-one emotional support from trained medical professionals in a safe, confidential and non-judgmental space.
EXPERT GUIDANCE: Staffed by experts with a combined experience of over 125 years in medical practice operations, CMA’s Center for Economic Services empowers physicians by providing resources and guidance to improve the success of their medical practices. Whether it’s identifying and fighting unfair payment practices, improving the efficiency of your practice, or guiding physicians through the contract evaluation and negotiation process, CMA has tools and resources to help.
QUESTIONS?CMA’s live-person call center is available Monday through Friday during business hours at (800) 786-4262 or via live chat at cmadocs.org.
