PORTLAND, Ore., Oct. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- OMPRO, Oregon's Medicare Quality Improvement Organization, recently announced that it will manage the Doctors' Office Quality Information Technology (DOQ-IT) project in Oregon. DOQ-IT is a new program initiated by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
The goal of DOQ-IT is to improve quality of care, patient safety, and efficiency for services provided to Medicare beneficiaries by promoting the adoption of electronic health records (EHR) and information technology (IT) in primary care physician offices.
The Medicare Prescription Drug and Modernization Act of 2003 encourages the use of health information technology to manage the clinical care of beneficiaries.
According to CMS, the DOQ-IT project offers an integrated approach to improving care for Medicare beneficiaries with chronic conditions such as diabetes, heart failure, coronary artery disease, hypertension, osteoarthritis, and preventive care.
"Transitioning to an EHR is difficult because it requires strong physician leadership and a significant commitment of capital and human resources," said David Shute, M.D., OMPRO's medical director. "However, we need to find a way to do just that. The EHR is an important tool that can help us to improve the quality of health care while lowering its costs."
During the next year, OMPRO will work with a small group of physician offices with practice assessment, planning, EHR selection, EHR implementation, and process evaluation and improvement.
"Fortunately, more and more physician practices are considering or implementing EHRs. By assisting them with this process, we will help these practices find the right solution for them, thereby increasing their efficiency and improving quality of care for their patients," explained Dr. Shute.
OMPRO is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the quality and effectiveness of health care. Since 1984, OMPRO has contracted with Medicare to support effective, evidence-based healthcare for Medicare patients in Oregon. Additionally, OMPRO contracts with state agencies and private organizations to conduct quality assurance and quality improvement healthcare projects. OMPRO's work spans the continuum of care, reaching all age and economic levels, and all delivery settings. As a healthcare resource, OMPRO provides expertise and experience in all aspects of quality: assurance, improvement, and utilization management. For more information, visit http://www.ompro.org/.
Contact: Beth Heinrich
503-382-3952
OMPROCONTACT: Beth Heinrich of OMPRO, +1-503-382-3952
Web site: http://www.ompro.org/