A QC Lunch & Learn Webinar with Nathan Morse, Maine state coordinator of the National Diabetes Prevention Program.

Interested in referring your patients with prediabetes to evidence-based lifestyle change programs that will soon be a reimbursable service? Here in Maine, the National Diabetes Prevention Program (NDPP) is partnering with health systems, primary care practices, and community-based organizations to do just that – and more.  Join us for this webinar with Nathan Morse, supervisor of the Maine CDC’s Diabetes Unit and the State of Maine coordinator of the NDPP. He’ll discuss the cross-cutting effects of primary prevention for chronic diseases and delve into the NDPP history, successes , tools and opportunities for partnership.

Prescription drug and opioid overdoses continue to rise in Maine and in the United States as a whole. Communities with Overdose Education and Naloxone Distribution (OEND) programs have demonstrated how effective naloxone prescribing can be in the number of lives reported to have been saved. This webinar will explore how to prescribe naloxone, how to talk to patients about the importance of having and knowing how to use naloxone and how to access naloxone affordably. Elisabeth Fowlie Mock, MD, will present. Elisabeth regularly teaches providers about naloxone use and other opioid-related clinical topics for MICIS, the Maine Medical Association’s academic detailing program.

As the incidence of multiple chronic diseases increases among older patients, so does the phenomenon of polypharmacy. Forty percent of community-dwelling older adults take five or more medications per day. Fifty percent of nursing home residents take nine or more. And in the inpatient setting, the rates are even higher.

According to the DHHS, “the burden of taking multiple medications has been associated with greater health care costs and an increased risk of adverse drug events, drug-interactions, medication non-adherence, reduced functional capacity and multiple geriatric syndromes.”

In this webinar, we present “person-centered deprescribing,” a new approach to reducing medication burden that a 2014 British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology article hails “as the first deprescribing process developed using knowledge of the patients' views of medication cessation; it focuses on engaging patients throughout the process, with the aim of improving long-term health outcomes.”

Please join presenters Dr. Roger Renfrew and Dr. Mary Ann E. Zagaria to explore the elements and benefits of person-centered deprescribing.

A discussion with Dr. Lisa Letourneau, Susan Dentzer, Gordon Smith and Jeff Austin regarding the implications of health care policy and funding under the Trump Administration.

PCMH Held it's final Webinar on November 16th. Lisa Letourneau, MD, MPH, Executive Director for Maine Quality Counts spoke on Life After PCMH Pilot/MAPCP and options for supporting alternative primary care payment. 

Medical Assisting is one of the allied health professions feeling the largest impact from recent healthcare reform. Highly competent support staff is increasingly important as population and health trends like team-based care and higher regulation shape the future of health care. Medical assistants (MAs) are widely recognized as part of the solution needed to provide quality, efficient care. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) predicts 2.6% annual growth in the medical assisting field for the next 10 years, more than twice the average for U.S. employment growth. Job postings for MAs grew 15 percent in 2014 after growing over 10 percent per year in 2012 and 2013, according to Gray Associates, a strategy and consulting firm serving the education industry. With these trends comes the need for additional training to fit the ever-changing and expanding roles held within the healthcare community.

Through training, curriculum redesign and strengthened clinical relationships MAs are being required to advance beyond typical clinical and administrative skills to develop targeted competencies. This push is empowering MAs to seek out professional development for continued growth while seeking organizations that have developed successful career laddering programs.

As the shift to value-based care gains momentum, primary care practices are increasingly dependent on care teams to meet quality and cost goals. Medical assistants (MAs) are widely recognized as a key members of those teams, and their roles are fast expanding. Through training, curriculum redesign and strengthened clinical relationships, MAs are being required to advance beyond typical clinical and administrative skills to develop targeted competencies. This push is empowering MAs to seek out professional development for continued growth while seeking organizations that have developed successful career laddering programs.

This webinar will study MA career laddering in depth, including both an overview of best practices and deep dives into two successful career laddering programs. Please join us to gain new insights into how you can support and expand the role of MAs in your practice or system.

Maine's new Opioid Prescribing Law, Chapter 488, places limits on the total daily dose of opioid medication that most patients may legally be prescribed.  Those limits are measured using "Morphine Milligram Equivalents", or MMEs.  But measuring MMEs for various opioid medications can be tricky and prescribers, naturally, have questions. Which MME Calculator to use?  How will MMEs be handled by Maine's Prescription Monitoring Program?  How can providers keep track of changes in patients' daily MME dosage?  How can practices use EMRs to record providers' opioid prescribing by MME?

This webinar will explore what we currently know about the use of MMEs, how they will be used to assure compliance with Chapter 488 and how one large primary care system in Maine is using its EMR to help providers understand their own opioid dosage trends.  

Since 2000, Maine’s adult obesity rate has jumped more than 58 percent. In 2016, nearly a third of adult Mainers are obese, a contributing factor in the increasing prevalence of many chronic diseases including hypertension, diabetes, heart disease and even depression. There is little doubt that obesity needs to be addressed by Maine’s medical community, but what exactly should a primary care provider do when encountering an obese patient?

In this webinar, we will talk about beginning conversations with patients about obesity treatment, review current and accepted algorithms for care, look at potential pharmacological causes of obesity and follow what happens when a patient is referred to a specialist for care.

The PCMH/HH Monthly webinar was held on October 25th, 2016. Presenters Rhonda Selvin, APRN, CNP, Medical Director for Maine Quality Counts and Kim Garden, LPN, BS, CPC presented on enhanced CMS fee for service billing codes (TCM and CCM). 

Maine has one of the highest rates in the nation of individuals who have experienced adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). Some studies indicate that more than half of Mainers have experienced at least one adverse childhood experience. The health impact of ACEs has shown to be profound, both behaviorally and physically.  So, understanding both the high prevalence and significant health impact of ACEs, what is a responsible health care provider to do?

During this webinar, we’ll discuss constructive ways that providers, administrators and entire systems can create a practice culture that acknowledges survivors of trauma, builds a supportive care environment and understands that treating their health needs sometimes requires going beyond the purely clinical.