The Mississippi Rural Health Association, in partnership with the State Office of Rural Health and Primary Care, is assisting rural health clinics with beginning to report quality data. This project, called the Mississippi Rural Health Clinic Quality Health Indicator Project, MS RHC QHi, will help to connect clinics to a system that will allow them to track their quality health indicators and measure themselves against their peers.
Reporting quality is best met with one of two different types of networks, the Accountable Care Organization and the Practice Transformation Network.
However, the Association is working on a third option especially for rural health clinics for internet reporting with no cost and no penalty.
Please see the information below to learn more about the three options available and how you can participate.
What Types of Networks Exist?
There are several types of networks that currently exist that report quality data. At this moment, rural health clinics are not required to participate in one of these networks or to report quality data. However, the Association highly encourages clinics to join one of these models in order to maximize their potential and to increase quality in their care. Click on one of the following links to learn more.
Accountable Care Organization (ACO)
Practice Transformation Network (PTN / TCPI)
Or, you may participate in the Association’s quality reporting system. Read more to find out how.
Why Participate?
Several of our RHCs are currently participating in an Accountable Care Organization or a Practice Transformation Network / alternative payment structure. Clinics in these types of models are already beginning to report quality data and are seeing great results compared to their peers both in and out of state.
Clinics not participating in one of these two models, which is the vast majority of those in Mississippi, will need to prepare themselves for the inevitable switch to quality reporting. Although RHCs are currently exempt from any quality reporting requirements, this will not last forever. The ACO and PTN models are fantastic and we encourage clinics to participate. If you are not interested in these, though, we still want you to prepare for quality reporting without penalty or cost.
No Cost and Private
The MRHA is leading a program to assist clinics at no cost to begin voluntary quality reporting into a system that will benchmark you against your peers. The information will be private and only available to you for your benefit. There is no financial benefit to participate, and no financial loss for poor scores. This is simply to help clinics “practice” their quality reporting and to use the information to help drive better quality and to identify areas of need within their own practice.
Mississippi-Based
The great thing about this program is that it is new and Mississippi-based. So, you can pick the quality measures important to you and help to design the system. Your input will be valuable as we move forward!
The Association also wishes to begin awarding RHCs with outstanding clinical quality measures as a result of reporting through clinical tools such as these. Participation in either an ACO, PTN or this new clinical tool will allow you to be eligible for one of these prestigious new awards.
Here’s How to Learn More
If you are interested in learning more, e-mail Ryan Kelly at ryan.kelly@mississippirural.org with your clinic name and the key contact person. We will follow-up with more information.
Mississippi Rural Health Association 