CYPRESS, Calif., Jan. 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- PacifiCare Health Systems Inc. is teaming with GeriNet Medical Associates to provide health care services to nursing home residents in Clark County, Nev., through the SecureAdvantage from PacifiCare(SM) program.
SecureAdvantage from PacifiCare is designed to enhance the overall health and well-being of nursing home residents and reduce emergency room visits and preventable hospitalizations. Each SecureAdvantage from PacifiCare member is assigned a geriatric nurse practitioner who anchors a “Circle of Care” team that includes physicians, nursing home staff and other medical professionals. This team approach offers nursing home residents more immediate on-site access to primary and preventive health care, as well as chronic care services.
SecureAdvantage is open for enrollment Jan. 1, 2005, and coverage begins Feb. 1. It is available to Secure Horizons Medicare Advantage members who reside in all Trans Health Management Inc. nursing facilities within Clark County and who choose GeriNet as their primary medical group. These facilities serve nearly 800 residents in Clark County.
Health care teams are able to visit residents more frequently and provide an enhanced level of care to their patients, according to Kathy Feeny, PacifiCare’s executive vice president of Secure Horizons Senior Solutions.
“In working with GeriNet and Trans Health Management, we feel we can help make a positive impact in the way health care is delivered and enhance nursing home residents’ overall quality of life,” said Feeny. “We believe a care model for nursing home residents that offers an extra set of trained eyes and ears can bring greater peace of mind. This benefits not only nursing home residents, but also their family members and nursing facility and medical staffs.”
University of Minnesota researchers evaluated similar programs that operated as federal demonstration projects over the past decade. The research found that these programs were effective in providing quality, coordinated care for nursing home residents while reducing hospital admissions.
PacifiCare Health Systems launched SecureAdvantage from PacifiCare in March of last year in Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties in California and has since expanded the program to Pima County in Arizona. To date, there are nearly 1,000 nursing home residents enrolled in the program.
About GeriNet
GeriNet is a regional network of physicians and nurse practitioners with an established reputation for providing quality and cost-effective primary medical services to nursing home residents. GeriNet’s vision is to improve the quality of life for long-term care residents by revolutionizing the delivery of health care. GeriNet is committed to providing nursing home residents individualized care to promote independence and sense of well being, while affording them dignity and the highest possible functional status.
Aside from their new expansion into Clark County, Nevada, GeriNet currently services 110,000 commercial and senior lives at more than 360 skilled nursing facilities in Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties in Southern California.
About Trans Health Management Inc.
Founded in 1998, Trans Health Management Inc. is an experienced operator of long-term care, skilled care, subacute care and specialty hospitals and has built a solid reputation of clinical excellence and strong operational ability. Trans Health Management provides care and support to more than 30,000 patients and their families each year through its nationwide network of skilled nursing facilities, long-term acute care hospitals, hospice agencies, and centers for the developmentally disabled.
The Trans Health Management network in Clark County, Nevada, consists of eight medical and rehabilitation facilities that are conveniently located throughout Las Vegas, Henderson and Boulder City. Last year, Trans Health Management’s network provided rehabilitation, surgical recovery, respiratory care, wound management, infectious disease services, pain management, renal services, infusion therapies and nutritional support to over 12,000 patients in Clark County.
Trans Health Management is recognized throughout the industry for its quality clinical practices, positive patient outcomes and innovative programming. Trans Health Management’s healthcare facilities offer a range of programs and services to meet the diverse needs of the community they serve.
About PacifiCare
PacifiCare Health Systems is one of the nation’s largest consumer health organizations, with more than 3 million health plan members and approximately 10 million specialty plan members nationwide. PacifiCare offers individuals, employers and Medicare beneficiaries a variety of consumer-driven health care and life insurance products. Currently, more than 99 percent of PacifiCare’s commercial health plan members are enrolled in plans that have received Excellent Accreditation by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA). PacifiCare’s specialty operations include behavioral health, dental and vision, and complete pharmacy benefit management through its wholly owned subsidiary, Prescription Solutions. More information on PacifiCare Health Systems is available at http://www.pacificare.com/.
PacifiCare Health Systems Inc.
CONTACT: Tyler Mason of PacifiCare, +1-714-226-3530; or Kim Phan ofGeriNet, +1-877-850-5000; or Karen Krebs of Trans Health Management Inc.,+1-702-845-4811
Web site: http://www.pacificare.com/
