Business Wire - December 15, 2008
The Positive Healthcare Disease Management Program was first accredited in 2006, becoming the first accredited HIV/AIDS disease management program in the United States. Recently awarded Full Accreditation through 2011, Positive Healthcare has demonstrated that it has met or exceeded the rigorous standards set forth by NCQA for Disease Management (DM) Accreditation. Earning NCQA DM Accreditation is an indication that a DM program is dedicated to giving patients and practitioners the systems support, education and other help necessary to ensure good outcomes, good patient care and provider satisfaction.
"We are honored to have received this distinction and to have met the high standards set forth by the National Committee for Quality Assurance," said Donna Stidham, Chief of Managed Care, AIDS Healthcare Foundation. "The success of our innovative Positive Healthcare Disease Management Program -- the first HIV/AIDS disease management program in the country to be accredited -- is due largely to our dedicated nursing staff and case managers, who are out in the community every day reaching out to HIV-positive individuals, ensuring that they receive the care and services they need."
NCQA is an independent not-for-profit organization dedicated to measuring the quality of America's health care. The standards are intended to help organizations achieve the highest level of performance possible, reduce patient risk, and create an environment of continuous improvement.
"NCQA's Disease Management accreditation program is thorough and rigorous. It's designed to highlight only those programs that truly improve chronic care," said NCQA President Margaret E. O'Kane. "AIDS Healthcare Foundation's Positive Healthcare is to be commended for being one of the first organizations in the nation to come forward to be reviewed."
For an organization to become accredited by NCQA, it must undergo a rigorous survey and meet certain standards designed to evaluate a program's clinical and administrative systems, as well as demonstrate an aggressive approach to quality management. The standards for the DM Accreditation Program are organized into six categories: program content, patient service, practitioner service, clinical systems, measurement and quality improvement, and program operation.
"Positive Healthcare is pleased to have earned Full Accreditation by the NCQA, considered the gold standard in evaluating health plan quality," said Tara Barreto, Director of Disease Management Operations at Positive Healthcare. "Most importantly, this achievement will help facilitate the expansion of our programs, enabling us to bring our successful model of HIV/AIDS disease management to other states, bringing as many HIV-positive people into care as possible, improving patient outcomes and reducing the cost of care."
About AHF
AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) is the nation's largest non-profit HIV/AIDS organization. AHF currently provides medical care and/or services to more than 85,000 individuals in 22 countries worldwide in the U.S., Africa, Latin America/Caribbean and Asia. Additional information is available at www.aidshealth.org.
In Florida, AIDS Healthcare Foundation serves more than 10,000 people living with HIV/AIDS through a variety of programs, including free HIV testing and prevention services; AHF Pharmacy; its Magic Johnson Healthcare Centers located in Miami and in Jacksonville; AHF's statewide disease management program 'Positive Healthcare Florida'; and its Medicare health plan, 'Positive Healthcare Partners,' serving Miami-Dade and Broward Counties. AHF also recently opened an 'Out of the Closet' thrift Store in Wilton Manors, offering free HIV testing and treatment referral through an 'AHF Pharmacy' built adjacent to the store.
Contacts
AHF/Positive Healthcare
Tara Barreto | Director - Florida Disease Management
954-318-4324 - Direct Line | 954-609-1079 - Cell Phone
tara.oneill@aidshealth.org
or
AIDS Healthcare Foundation
Lori Yeghiayan | Associate Director of Communications
323-860-5227 - Direct Line | 323-377-4312 - Cell Phone
loriy@aidshealth.org
081215
BW081230
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