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Resources : Continuity of Care Services

Community Connected

» U.S. Census Bureau State & County QuickFacts
Quicky and easy access to facts about the people, business and geography of your state, county or city. Online data sets now include cities and towns with at least 25,000 people

» U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
DHHS is "the United States government's principal agency for protecting the health of all Americans and providing essential human services, especially for those who are least able to help themselves." Over 300 programs are available including financial assistance and services for low-income families, maternal and infant health resources, substance abuse treatment and prevention, and services for older Americans, including home-delivered meals.

» www.Medicare.gov
The official U.S. Government site for people with Medicare. Locate Medicare Prescription Drug information and assistance in your community. Click here to search for Medicare Prescription Drug Plans in your area or access BenefitsCheckupRx™, a decision-support tool that assists consumers who are considering signing up for the new Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage.

» Eldercare Locator
A public service of the U.S. Administration on Aging, the Eldercare Locator is "the first step to finding resources for older adults in any U.S. community. Just one phone call or Website visit provides an instant connection to resources that enable older persons to live independently in their communities." Use the online resources or call toll-free at 1-800-677-1116 weekdays, 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. (ET). Spanish-speaking Information Specialists are on duty.

» American Red Cross
"Each year, the American Red Cross responds immediately to more than 70,000 disasters, including house or apartment fires (the majority of disaster responses), hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, tornadoes, hazardous materials spills, transportation accidents, explosions, and other natural and man-made disasters." To find your local chapter click here.

» National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization
Search the NHPO's database to find accredited local hospice care programs in the United States.

Coordinated Ancillary Services

» Medical Economics: Adding Ancillaries
Medical Economics offers this "series of articles on specific ancillary services that can boost your bottom line and keep your practice busy in a competitive market."

» FPM: Stark Statute series by Alice G. Gosfield, JD
The Stark Truth About the Stark Law: Part I - Explains "what the Stark statute is, how it differs from the anti-kickback statute and how you can determine whether it applies to you." Defines key terms, describes the standards for meeting the "group practice" definition and discusses how the definition applies to referrals for in-office ancillary services and to other physicians in the group.
The Stark Truth About the Stark Law: Part II - Examines the Stark statute exceptions most important to family physicians and primary care practices.
Stark III: Refinement Not Revolution (Part 1) - "Find out how the latest round of self-referral regulations affects your practice."

Collaborative Referral Relationships

» FPM: Optimizing Referrals & Consults With a Standardized Process
This 2007 Family Practice Management concludes athat "A standardized form of communication, such as a referral request form, will help consultants provide appropriate care for your patients and keep you in the loop, making the process run smoothly for everyone" and offers links to an updated sample consultation/referral request form as either PDF or Word document.

» FPM Toolbox: Referral Management Resources
Family Practice Management makes available a PDF consultation/referral request form, a sample referral agreement in Word format and a tracking book for unresolved issues PDF.

Comprehensive Care

» JFP: Hospitalists and family physicians: Understanding opportunities and risks
This research paper by Ann Scheck McAlearney, ScD – available at the Journal of Family Practice – suggests that "Family physicians can leverage relationships with hospitalists by ensuring strong, ongoing communication to reduce risks to patients associated with lost information, miscommunications, and gaps in continuity of care."

» NEJM Dec 2007: Outcomes of Care by Hospitalists, General Internists, and Family Physicians
Peter K. Lindenauer, M.D., Michael B. Rothberg, M.D., M.P.H., Penelope S. Pekow, Ph.D., Christopher Kenwood, B.S., Evan M. Benjamin, M.D., and Andrew D. Auerbach, M.D., M.P.H.
"Conclusions: For common inpatient diagnoses, the hospitalist model is associated with a small reduction in the length of stay without an adverse effect on rates of death or readmission. Hospitalist care appears to be modestly less expensive than that provided by general internists, but it offers no significant savings as compared with the care provided by family physicians."

Hospital/Urgent Care

» AAFP Resources: Family Practice Privileges & Procedures
The AAFP has aggregated all of its resources on hospital privileges onto one page.

» Family Practice Management: Standardized admission orders
AAFP's Family Practice Management makes available this handy "set of 29 ready-made admission orders for conditions ranging from ASA overdose to chest pain to diabetic ketoacidosis." Admit orders are available in PDF or Word format.

Mental Health Care

» FDA list of all State Health Agencies
A convenient alpha list of all the state health agencies with links to their Web sites.

» Center for Mental Health Services
The CMHS is a portal to many mental health services in the community, including a state-by-state resources list and a Mental Health Services Locator.

» TherapistLocator.net
A public service of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT), this information and search tool will help you find a marriage and family therapist in your area. Therapists listed in the directory are Clinical Members of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. Also included: therapist's office locations and availability, practice description, education, professional licenses, health plan participation, achievements and awards and languages spoken.