Summer 2021 Newsletter

In April, the California Clinically Integrated Networks (CINs) welcomed Christian Kim as the CIN Quality Director.

The California CINs are:

• Central Valley Quality Care Network
• Dignity Health Care Network
• North State Quality Care Network
• Southern California Integrated Care Network
• Santa Cruz Quality Care Network
• San Joaquin Quality Care Network
• Valley Integrated Provider Network

Christian will work closely with the CINs’ executive directors, serving as a key leader for quality to ensure high performance in the CIN public- and private-payor, value-based agreements. In addition, he will work in close partnership with the quality teams of Dignity Health Medical Foundation and Dignity Health Management Services Organization (DHMSO) as well as the Physician Enterprise and Population Health to implement quality strategy and ensure alignment.

Prior to joining Dignity Health, Christian worked as a Senior Healthcare Consultant at Anthem, partnering with provider groups and networks on quality and cost strategies. He successfully guided his clients to transform their clinical operations, leading to higher quality scores and earning shared savings. In his free time, he enjoys working on political and policy campaigns. Christian completed his undergraduate degree in political science at the University of California, Berkeley and holds a BSN from Columbia University. He also completed his MBA and a Master of International Relations from The University of Chicago, Booth School of Business.

For 2021, Christian has strategized for CINs and providers to focus on:

• CommonSpirit measures, which include annual wellness visits, hypertension – blood pressure control, diabetes – poor control
• Medicare measures, which include screening for clinical depression and follow-up plan, hypertension – blood pressure control, diabetes – poor control
• Commercial payor measures, proactive and protocol

He also emphasizes engaging patients to help them get appropriate tests and immunizations as well as collaborating with quality nurses to partner with provider offices in sharing the latest quality protocols.

Please join us in welcoming Christian Kim to our CommonSpirit Health Physician Enterprise West team! You can reach him at [email protected].

Please remember to notify us of any practice changes (new providers, providers leaving, etc.).
Contact Desiree Pyle, Physician Practice Liaison, at [email protected] with updates.

“It is a tremendous understatement to say that the pandemic has taken a toll on the mental, spiritual and physical wellbeing of our youth,” writes Dr. Jill Walsh, Pediatrician and Chair, Department of Pediatrics, Dignity Health Mercy Medical Group. “But there is hope for a return to some normalcy: adolescents ages 12-17 are now eligible for COVID vaccination.”

Read why this development gives Dr. Walsh hope.

COVID-19 has left no community untouched. But its disproportionate impact on our most vulnerable populations — particularly communities of color — is well documented.

“For these communities, health disparities and mistreatment aren’t new,” writes Alisahah Jackson, MD, System Vice President, Innovation and Policy, Population Health. “Historical and systemic racism has, and continues to, exclude people of color from accessing health care and social services.”

As part of Population Health’s commitment to reducing vaccine hesitancy and ensuring equitable access, Dr. Jackson is writing and speaking on these issues, and CommonSpirit Health is working on proactive outreach in communities that have been disproportionately affected, historically disenfranchised or have more limited access to health care.

Read More.

CommonSpirit Health has launched a clinical partnership with BrightHeart Health to offer telehealth services for medication-assisted treatment (TeleMAT) for patients with opioid use disorder.

Available in inpatient, outpatient or emergency room settings, teleMAT does not replace existing medication-assisted treatment (MAT) programs, but provides easy access ‒ either virtually or over the phone ‒ to low-threshold, evidence-based medication therapy and behavioral health treatment for patients with opioid use disorder. Initially, TeleMAT services will launch in six regions across CommonSpirit’s 21-state footprint.

Read more.

Even as more and more Americans get vaccinated against COVID-19, ever-evolving survey data shows that many Americans remain opposed to, or skeptical of, getting the vaccine. Continued outreach and education are critical to increasing vaccination rates and reaching herd immunity.

CommonSpirit Health is committed to providing proactive and culturally competent education and awareness for our internal staff and providers — as well as the patients and communities we serve — to promote COVID-19 vaccination as we work to ensure equitable access. On our vaccine information page, you’ll find the following tools to assist you and your staff in your efforts to educate patients on the vaccine:

• Communications Guidance
• Newsroom Insights
• Video Shorts
• Social Media Posts
• Outreach Newsletter
• PPT Presentation Slides

View the page now.