2020 Innovation Award Winners

Albany Area Primary Health Care, Inc.’s “Healthy at Home” Initiative

Albany Area Primary Health Care (AAPHC) developed the Healthy at Home Initiative to complement its telehealth visits and to add a way to communicate with high-risk patients. The goal? Keep patients safe at home, where there is reduced risk of contracting COVID-19. The biggest barrier to bringing care to patients’ homes was lack of information on patients’ vital signs during telehealth visits.

With support from a foundation grant, AAPHC used an innovative approach to getting that information. It purchased at-home vitals kits so patients could complete their own basic triage giving patients the ability to report crucial data to their providers during telehealth visits.

HealthKeepers, Inc. (Anthem) Behavioral Health Homes Initiative

The Behavioral Health unit of Anthem’s Virginia Medicaid team designed and implemented a treatment model focused on closing disease-specific gaps in care for persons with co-occurring behavioral health and chronic health conditions.

Using NCQA’s HEDIS® measures as a base, Behavioral Health Homes tackles wellness, disease management and prevention. At an individual level, Behavioral Health Homes resulted in improved health outcomes. At the population level, Behavioral Health Homes helped lower population metrics ranging from behavioral health to medical inpatient admissions.

UVMHN Elizabethtown Community Hospital Well Fed Collaborative

The Well Fed Collaborative was established to combat the dietary crisis in Essex County. Working together with Essex County and community-based organizations, farmers and retailers, Well Fed provides nutrition education, which increases consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables and improves the affordability of local foods.