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Increasingly, medical centers are being reimbursed based more on the quality of care, as opposed to the number of services provided, he said.
“For the past two years and going forward, we monitor a minimum of 10 parameters for every colononscopy that’s been done by every physician at the center,” Gabbard said.
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It took staff and leadership at the facility about six months to compile the information necessary to qualify for the recognition. It is the first time the recognition has been sought and achieved in Springfield.
The parameters included everything from evaluating the outpatient center’s policies to what procedures are used to clean medical instruments. The facility is alto taking part in a separate voluntary initiative called the Gastrointestinal Quality Improvement Consortium to measure the quality of endoscopy services and tracks patient outcomes.
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Gabbard estimated physicians at the Springfield outpatient center perform between 2,500 and 3,000 endoscopies annually.
Along with those procedures, the facility also offers services including opthamology, pain management and podiatry.
“We’re going out of our way and spending a lot of time and effort to ensure quality,” Gabbard said.
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