Project Results

To see results of the Evaluation project done by the Minnesota Health Partnership, click here .

Public Policy Goal

To create a model of health care that integrates the best elements of general health care and workers' compensation medical care for the treatment of both occupational and non-occupational conditions through: 1) providing patient choice of provider for all health care needs; 2) implementing common provider disability prevention practices for all conditions, including the use of an Activity Plan as a communication tool; 3) providing similar employer return to work accommodations for employees regardless of work-relatedness whenever possible. In effect, the Coordinated Health Care and Disability Prevention model was designed to create a more seamless care delivery system, which in turn would improve patient outcomes and decrease disability costs.

Project Objective

Major objectives of this project were to:

1. Create a coordinated health care delivery model that blends the best of traditional employee health care and workers' compensation medical coverage.
2. Increase the robustness of experience with this model of health care delivery and strengthen the statistical basis for evaluation purposes.

Project Description

The Minnesota Health Partnership, a diverse group representing employers, health care provider organizations, labor, insurers, and state government agencies, seeks to create a coordinated health care delivery model which blends traditional employee health care and workers' compensation medical coverage, focusing on coordinated disability prevention activities for workers with both work-related and non-occupational conditions. The partnership spent several years actively planning for this form of "twenty-four hour" care and worked closely with primary care clinics in the Twin Cities area. This project had three stages: development, pilot site implementation, and then additional test site implementation. Research methods were developed to study the impact of this model on medical care quality, costs and participant satisfaction. [See the separate report of the MHP Evaluation Project ]

Key Findings or Accomplishments:

• A coordinated health care and disability prevention model was created which increased the awareness of the potential benefits of disability prevention and accelerated the movement of the Twin Cities marketplace toward integrated/coordinated health care.
• An Activity Plan format was developed with multiple stakeholders input for use as a patient communication and educational tool. Patients could provide a copy of the Activity Plan documenting any activity limitations or abilities to employers or other third parties. Confidentiality was maintained as copies of the Activity Plan provided to patients had confidential information deleted. Traditionally, this kind of patient education information is only available for work-related injuries. This mechanism also increased provider communication on physical activity with all patients, not just occupationally injured workers.
• Six employers and ten clinics piloted the model.
• Seven employers and seven clinics served as controls.

Tools Developed:

•   Health Care Quality Information Survey
•   Activity Plan

Materials Developed:

• MHP Brochure
• MHP Employee Brochure
• MHP Pilot Employer Guide
• MHP Test Clinic Site Handbook
• MHP Quarterly Newsletters

Reports and Publications:

McGrail, M, Gorman, R, Lohman, W, Parker, D. " Disability Prevention: Assessing Appropriate Activity. " Minnesota Physician XIV (14), no. 1 (2000).

McGrail, M, Gorman, R, Lohman, W. " Disability Prevention Principles in the Primary Care Office. " American Family Physician 63, no. 4 (2001).

McGrail, Lohman, Calasanz, Christianson, Cortez, Gorman, Parker, Radosevich, Westman. " The Minnesota Health Partnership: Coordinated Health Care and Disability Prevention: The Implementation of an Integrated Benefits and Medical Care Model. " Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation 12, no. 1 (2002): 43-54.

McGrail, M, Gorman R, Lohman, W. "Disability Prevention." Up To Date .

Radosevich, McGrail, Lohman, Gorman, Parker, Calasanz. "The Relationship of Disability Prevention with Patient Health Status and Satisfaction with Their Primary Care Provider. " Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine 43, no. 8 (2001): 706-12.

Presentations:

William Lohman, MD, "Disability Management and Prevention: Implications from WC Research for General Clinical Care" Robert Wood Johnson Workers' Compensation Health Initiative Annual Meeting, September 6-7, 2001, Newport, RI.

Michael P. McGrail, Jr., MD, MPH, "Minnesota Health Partnership: Coordinated Health Care and Disability Prevention Lessons Learned and Applications for the future," Robert Wood Johnson Workers' Compensation Health Initiative Annual Meeting, September 6-7, 2001, Newport, RI.

Additional Plans:

An evaluation project was conducted; please see separate report of the MHP Evaluation Project.