June 5, 2006                                                    

NCQA and Pfizer Inc Publish Strategies for Optimizing Care for Older Adults

Fourth edition of Quality Profiles™: The Leadership Series highlights successful efforts to improve the quality of care for older adults

WASHINGTON—The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA), in collaboration with Pfizer Inc, today released a new publication profiling strategies and recommendations for improving the quality of care for older adults.

Quality Profiles™: The Leadership Series—Focus on Enhancing Care for Older Adults offers a comprehensive and forward-thinking commentary on older adult care—one that will help stakeholders improve care today and successfully plan for the needs of tomorrow. 

“Excellent, well-coordinated health care can make the difference for seniors between an active, rewarding life and one limited by illness," said NCQA President Margaret E. O’Kane.  “This edition of Quality Profiles showcases practical approaches that leading health plans are using to improve the health of older adults.”

Our nation is poised for an unprecedented demographic shift—the dramatic aging of the population—brought about by the pronounced increase in life expectancy and the maturing of the baby boomers, the largest cohort in U.S. history. Today, a 65-year-old can expect to live an additional 18 years, and an 85 year old for six or more years. These demographic changes present largely uncharted territory for the many stakeholders in the U.S. health care system, and offer far-reaching and unique challenges in the pursuit of health care quality and cost management. 

NCQA and Pfizer developed the fourth edition of The Leadership Series to showcase practical strategies and approaches to health care quality improvement for this growing population, with a special emphasis on those dimensions of care that pose the greatest challenges—and the greatest potential for improvement.

“Older adults present unique challenges to the health care environment because the very nature of aging has many dimensions to it,” said Pat Kelly, President of Pfizer Inc US Pharmaceuticals. “Our goal is to share practical examples of successful approaches that can serve as models for quality improvement.”

This addition to the Quality Profiles series contributes to ongoing efforts to improve the care of older adults by offering a resource with information on the special needs of older adults across the continuum of health status and functional ability. Interwoven in this discussion are case studies designed to highlight successful care interventions for the older adult population, such as:

• The advantages of hip protectors that displace the impact of a fall and reduce hip fractures for frail elderly
• How the Medicare Health Outcomes Survey data can be used to help health plans identify comorbidities in their Medicare populations to target interventions more effectively
• A program to increase screening for osteoporosis and educate patients about the condition 

To obtain a copy of Quality Profiles™: The Leadership Series—Focus on Enhancing Care for Older Adults, or one of the previous editions, Focus on Cardiovascular Disease, Focus on Depression, or Focus on Diabetes, call 1-888-412-3090 or visit www.qualityprofiles.org.

NCQA is a private, nonprofit organization dedicated to improving health care quality. NCQA accredits and certifies a wide range of health care organizations, recognizes physicians and physician groups in key clinical areas, and manages the evolution of HEDIS®, the tool that the nation’s health plans use to measure and report on their performance. NCQA is committed to providing health care quality information through the Web, media, and data licensing agreements to help consumers, employers, and others make more informed health care choices.

Pfizer Inc discovers, develops, manufactures, and markets leading prescription medicines for humans and animals and many of the world’s best-known consumer brands. Our innovative, value-added products improve the quality of life of people around the world and help them enjoy longer, healthier, and more productive lives. The company has three business segments: health care, animal health, and consumer health care. Our products are available in more than 150 countries.

ORGANIZATIONS PARTICIPATING IN
FOCUS ON ENHANCING CARE FOR OLDER ADULTS

Atlanta Regional Commission, Atlanta, Georgia

Evercare, Minnetonka, Minnesota

Fallon Community Health Plan, Worcester, Massachusetts

Florida Medical Quality Assurance, Inc., Tampa, Florida

Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, Wellesley, Massachusetts

ORGANIZATIONS CONTRIBUTING TO
FOCUS ON ENHANCING CARE FOR OLDER ADULTS

Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research, Portland, Oregon

Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, Rochester, Minnesota

Sierra Health Services, Reno, Nevada
 
“Quality Profiles” is a trademark of NCQA. “HEDIS” is a registered trademark of NCQA. All rights reserved.