Phytel ™s solution also helps practices gain recognition from the National Committee on Quality Assurance (NCQA) as patient-centered medical homes. This designation, which is already helping some practices get substantial rewards in health plan pilots, requires the use of patient tracking and registry functions, preventive-care alerts, and care coordination based on evidence-based guidelines. Practices can meet many of these requirements by using Phytel.

In addition, Phytel makes it easier for practices to report performance data to CMS ™s Physician Quality Reporting Initiative (PQRI), so they can qualify for a 2 percent Medicare bonus. Instead of laboriously collecting and incorporating clinical information through the billing process, practices can use the Phytel registry to generate PQRI reports automatically. Where there are missing clinical data points, physicians can check off the appropriate boxes in the Web-based Phytel application.

Phytel ™s quality reporting capability can also aid practices that plan to apply for EMR subsidies that are included in the HITECH economic stimulus package. To receive those subsidies of up to $44,000 per physician, practices will have to show that they ™re using their EMRs to improve quality. Phytel generates lists of patients by specific condition to use for quality improvement, reduction of disparities, and outreach and send reminders to patients per patient preference for preventive and follow up care.

Version 5 of the Proactive Patient Outreach service takes an already proven solution and makes it even better. Whether a practice has an electronic medical record or not, Phytel can help it improve population health management, communicate better with patients, and obtain a variety of performance incentives.

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