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We are excited to share that the Medford practice of Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates has received recognition from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) as a Patient-Centered Medical Home 2011 (PCMH 2011).
PCMH 2011 sets the newest standards for a model of healthcare delivery that encourages improved quality and enables greater involvement of patients in their own care. It is based upon standards that assess whether a physician practice functions as a “patient-centered medical home.” A patient-centered medical home is a setting where each patient has an ongoing relationship with a personal physician who leads a team and an organization that takes collective responsibility for patient care.
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 in which primary care physicians, specialists and the patient all communicate and work towards the same health care goals, through patient counseling, discussion of lifestyle changes, and the management of chronic conditions.
Our Medford practice met key program components to achieve PCMH 2011 recognition, including:
- Written standards for patient access and continuity of care
- Use of patient feedback materials
- Appropriate use of charting tools to track patients and organize clinical information
- Responsive care management techniques with an emphasis on preventive care for individual patients and for the entire patient population
- Adaptation to each patient’s cultural and linguistic needs
- Use of information technology for prescriptions, test and referral tracking and coordination with other health care providers
- Use of evidence-based guidelines to treat chronic conditions
- Measurement and reporting of clinical and service performance
Previously, sixteen of Harvard Vanguard’s internal medicine practices including Medford earned national accreditation as Level 3 Patient-Centered Medical Homes from the NCQA. We are currently working to ensure that all of our practices follow Medford in achieving this new prestigious PCMH 2011 recognition.
The Medford practice of Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates is located at 26 City Hall Mall (781-306-5100) and welcomes new adult and pediatric patients.
