Empowering FQHCs with the technology tools to meet their value-based care goals

Coming into work at an FQHC every morning can often feel like walking into the unknown. Which patients will show up to their appointments? How many walk-ins will drop by? What are their histories, diagnoses and risk profiles? And which clinical and socioeconomic concerns should be addressed first?

It can be exciting and rewarding to know that every interaction will bring a fresh puzzle to solve. But it’s equally important to know that there are tools and resources available to quickly and effectively find a solution that works for the patient, the clinical team and the organization as a whole – especially in the world of value-based care, where outcomes and efficiency matter.

That’s why a digital infrastructure with integrated, intuitive, comprehensive technology that can support informed decision-making at the point of care is so important—especially for FQHCs. 

These tools should do it all: not just facilitate health information exchange across payers, labs, pharmacies, and other clinical partners, but also surface the most important, curated information to the clinician when and where they need it. They should be easily accessible without disrupting the workflow. And they should come with experienced implementation assistance and robust tech support should users have any questions or issues.

But FQHCs often lack the resources needed to fully invest in acquiring and operationalizing these tools. That takes time and money that isn’t available. 

Technology and support that work for FQHCs

With Yuvo Health, FQHCs can identify their unique path to success in value-based care that works for their health center. That includes introducing new technical capabilities to support their value-based care journey—capabilities that work together seamlessly to create a unique “tech flywheel” that offers streamlined access to critical information that can, in turn, boost performance in value-driven contracts.

Yuvo Health’s approach to technology starts with foundational infrastructure, such as APIs to extract scheduling and encounter data directly from the EHR, connections with state and national health information exchange networks (HIEs) for ADT alerts and non-FQHC encounter data, and a modern data warehouse with advanced analytics and business intelligence features.

Then, we layer on sophisticated risk stratification for Medicaid patients, multi-language patient messaging tools to foster ongoing engagement and care navigation solutions to assist with coordinating services for high-risk and complex individuals.

All of these tools combine to produce timely, actionable insights on patients and their needs empowering our FQHC partners with an even deeper understanding of their populations individually and at scale. In turn, the FQHCs can more efficiently and effectively deliver their exceptional care to the people who need it most. 

But we don’t stop there. Our FQHC partners can best support their patients when they can access these data-driven insights in real-time, to prompt conversations and decision-making right there at the visit. That is why we also offer integration with VIM, a small but mighty widget that appears directly within the EHR workflow.

With just a few clicks, care teams can view a comprehensive, clinician-friendly spread of all of the data collected and curated through the tech flywheel, such as high-priority gaps in care that could be closed during the current visit. Behind the scenes, the tool also helps to automate accurate risk scoring and coding, facilitate clinical data exchange with payers, and assist with reducing the burdens of referrals and prior authorizations.

People to power the transition

FQHCs need tools that work for them, not the other way around. So, starting with customized implementation and training, our dedicated help staff work with each FQHC according to their unique needs—offering ongoing virtual and in-person technical support, one-on-one training or in-service sessions. FQHCs can collaborate with us however and whenever they need to in order to quickly integrate game-changing information and capabilities into their care processes.

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The result is better communication across the care team and easier access to high-value data points at the point of care, which can boost performance on crucial clinical quality measures and lead to enhanced incentives in value-based care contracts.

“Data is the fuel that powers better outcomes and greater efficiencies, but many FQHCs haven’t had the resources to build an optimized digital engine that can use that fuel to progress along the road to value,” said Sujata Bajaj, Chief Technology Officer at Yuvo Health. 

“Our FQHC partners are the ones doing the heavy lifting to care for their patients, so we want to shoulder the burden of putting the nuts and bolts in place while also providing as much guidance and support as necessary to infuse data and insights that improve the patient care process. We’re with our FQHCs all the way, from wherever they start to anywhere they can dream of going. It’s always such an honor to make this journey together.” 

FQHCs and their patients are seeing the results

For our established FQHC partners, the tech flywheel is already making a difference in how clinicians make decisions that support better outcomes and lower costs.  

Our FQHCs have achieved a 65% improvement in quality performance year-over-year between 2022 and 2023, including better performance on immunizations for adults, breast cancer screenings, postpartum care, and colorectal cancer screenings.

And in June of 2024, we were thrilled to announce that a group of our New York FQHC partners earned shared savings in their first year of contracting – an uncommon achievement for any healthcare organization entering the value-based landscape, let alone for FQHCs.

“Adopting the VIM Population Health Platform has been a transformative step for our organization,” said Ari Benjamin, MD, Chief Medical Officer at Joseph P. Addabbo Family Health Center, one of the FQHCs that shared in savings. With the aid of Yuvo’s on-site collaboration and technology offerings, the health center has seen a 33% increase in care gaps addressed during visits and a 20% increase in gap closure.

“The platform’s robust data capabilities have empowered our providers to make more informed clinical decisions, ultimately enhancing the quality of care we deliver to our patients,” continued Dr. Benjamin. “We are excited about the potential of this tool to continue improving health outcomes for our community.”

With the right technology, the everyday puzzles of patient care get solved faster, more proactively, and with less effort, creating an environment where FQHCs can boldly and confidently travel the road to better experiences and shared savings while tackling whatever challenges the next day will bring.

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