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Here are some of the most frequently asked questions about NCQA’s various programs. If you don’t see what you are looking for in one of the entries below, you can  ask a question through My NCQA.

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5.22.2018 AC 02 Our clinic has walk-in appointments available every day. Do these count as same-day appointments?

No. Walk-in appointments are different from scheduled same-day appointments. Same-day appointments offer patients the opportunity to schedule a routine or urgent visit at a specific time to enable more patient-centered and convenient access; this prevents the need to wait for the next available clinician at the clinic.

PCMH 2017

5.22.2018 AC 01 What are examples for how and where practices should collect data to address AC 01?

The intent of AC 01 is to assess the access needs and preferences of the practice’s patient population. To identify the best way to obtain this information, practices may need to review how they are currently collecting patient feedback on access needs. For example, a patient survey may ask patients if they are able to get an appointment when needed; however, that question doesn't tell you when patients want to access the practice. The practice may be offering access when the majority of patients don't or aren't able to utilize it.
Practices should collect and assess the feedback from patients to see if there's a need to adjust the access provided to patients. Some questions to   consider include:

  1. What data are you already collecting on patient access (e.g. surveys, use of appointments)? Is it current and does it cover the whole patient population?
  2. How often do you need to assess the access needs of your patients?
  3. What variables may impact changes in the use of appointment types?
  4. If using patient satisfaction surveys, how many patients are actually responding? If the response rate is low, is there another mode of collecting feedback to get more input.
  5. Do the questions on your survey ask patients directly about their access needs or preferences?

PCMH 2017

5.22.2018 AC 02 Are practices required to measure their capacity to see patients or to measure the utilization of same-day appointments (i.e., number of patients seen)?

Practices are expected to show both availability (i.e., open appointment slots at the beginning of the day) and use of same-day appointments for a period of five consecutive days. Practices should also monitor the availability of same-day appointments against their documented process. Practices may use utilization of same-day appointment access as an indication of patient need.

PCMH 2017

5.22.2018 AC 02 Are practices required to reserve separate same-day appointment slots for routine and urgent visits?

No. Practices must show appointment slots that are available for both urgent/acute and routine care, but may have a policy to accommodate patients with urgent/acute care needs first.

PCMH 2017

5.21.2018 TC 08 What credentials are required for the care manager?

NCQA is not prescriptive regarding which clinical staff it is (clinician, nurse, social worker or other provider) and the practice may determine the training and skills needed to address and manage the behavioral health care needs of their patient population.
 

PCMH 2017

5.21.2018 TC 06 Our clinical staff teams are on different schedules, so they often meet in separate teams to discuss patients. Does this meet the requirement?

The requirement is met if teams share questions or concerns about shared patients via regular, structured communication (such as the EHR). The intent of the criterion is for all members of the care team to be involved in communication about patient care, but care teams can meet separately for each clinician’s scheduled patients.
 

PCMH 2017

5.21.2018 TC 09 How can practices demonstrate that they provide access to evidence-based care?

Information about care can be provided to patients through materials such as brochures, flyers or information posted on the practice’s website. When describing the services provided by the practice, attention should be drawn to defining evidence-based guidelines for preventive and clinical care.
 

PCMH 2017

5.21.2018 TC 04 May patient/family/caregiver members of a practice’s advisory council participate in meetings by telephone?

Yes. This method of participation must be included in the practice’s documented process for involving patients/families/caregivers on QI teams or practice advisory councils.
 

PCMH 2017

5.21.2018 TC 06 Are practices required to have daily, structured meetings with the entire care team? Is the clinician required to attend?

TC 06 requires practices to engage in regular communication to discuss care for patients scheduled each day, but this requirement can be satisfied by demonstration of either scheduled team meetings or scheduled electronic team communication, depending on the practice’s process for communication. Please note this communication is focused on patient care needs and is not to discuss practice transformation activities or staffing schedules.
All members of the practice care team, including clinicians, must participate in the communication; however, it is not required that the clinician be present if the team meets in-person, as long as there is a process in place to communicate the information from the meeting to the clinician.
 

PCMH 2017

5.21.2018 TC 09 Is a practice brochure sufficient evidence for this criterion?

This criterion requires both a documented process ensuring information is distributed to patients and demonstration of patient materials with the minimum information described in the guidance. However, if the practice's documented process is described in the patient brochure, that brochure could be sufficient evidence for TC 09.
 

PCMH 2017

5.21.2018 TC 01 Does the clinician lead and staff managing the medical home transformation need to be an MD?

The clinician lead of the medical home must be a clinician as defined in the PCMH Policies and Procedures, which includes clinicians with an unrestricted license as an MD, DO, APRN or PA; however, NCQA is not prescriptive regarding the staff member who can be designated as the PCMH manager. Both can serve multiple sites and both roles can be assumed by the same person.
 

PCMH 2017

5.15.2018 ECDS Do you utilize FHIR to specify ECDS measures?

No. HEDIS ECDS measures use Quality Data Model (QDM) 5.3 as the reference model, although NCQA is researching the use of FHIR as a possible option.  

HEDIS 2018