Care Transformation Collaborative of Rhode Island News & Updates | November 2020
Applications Due Nov. 30* for New CTC-RI / PCMH Kids Telehealth Learning Collaborative ($22,000 Per Practice Site)
Each primary care practice site will be provided with infrastructure ($17,000 by 12/30/20) and incentive funding payments ($5,000 at conclusion), practice facilitation technical support, and quarterly “best practice sharing” peer learning services.

Practices can additionally access no cost technical assistance and consulting from Northeast Telehealth Resource Center to help design and implement telehealth, including business planning, technology assessments, workflow development, and more.

Designed for pediatric, adult, and family medicine practices, including Federally Qualified Health Centers, CTC-RI is accepting applications for a 12-month pilot learning collaborative to test the use of telehealth technology to improve care for patients with a selected chronic condition.

Practices can indicate on the application preferred start date (February 2021 or May 2021).

Practices can select chronic condition (medical or behavioral) that they would like to focus on and the technology they would like to test (including medical apps, text messaging, wearable activity devises, remote monitoring or data management portal and patient messaging).

This pilot telehealth program is financed by UnitedHealthcare and authorized CARES Act funding. NETRC is federally funded by HRSA.

*Practices may request an extension until December 2, 2020.
Dec. 4 Deadline: Funding Opportunity for Practices Providing Prenatal and Postpartum Clinical Care
To help address the behavioral health needs of perinatal patients during COVID-19, the RI Dept. of Health and CTC-RI are pleased to offer practices providing prenatal and postpartum clinical care the opportunity to join the RI MomsPRN (RI Maternal Psychiatry Resource Network) perinatal behavioral health quality improvement initiative. The goal of the initiative is to improve screening rates of pregnant and postpartum patients for depression, anxiety, and substance use using evidence-based screening tools. Up to 6 prenatal care practices will be selected with project activities scheduled to begin in Jan. 2021 and continue for 15 months. Applications are due by Dec. 4.
Save the Date! December 11 Breakfast of Champions
Please save the date for the CTC-RI Quarterly Breakfast of Champions. All Clinical Practice Champions and practice site clinical and administrative leaders are expected to attend.

Friday, December 11, 7:30-9:00am

Planned agenda and topics to include:
  • Current COVID Pandemic Challenges for Practices
  • Review of Pediatric Immunization and Medicaid Access Efforts
  • Review of “Care Delivery Design for Pediatric Practices to Maximize Success in Comprehensive Primary Care Capitation” (Adult Design on December 18 CTC-RI Clinical Strategy Committee agenda.)
Celebrating 3 Years of Successful SBIRT Work in Rhode Island
On November 19, CTC-RI, in collaboration with the Department of Behavioral Healthcare, Developmental Disabilities, and Hospitals (BHDDH), hosted a meeting with numerous stakeholders that reflected on the past three years of work supporting Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT). SBIRT is a best practice for the early identification and treatment of alcohol and other substance use disorders. 
 
In 2017, CTC-RI was awarded a five-year contract from BHDDH to implement SBIRT screening across RI. Trained screeners are working in more than 50 settings in RI, including primary care, hospital emergency rooms, urgent care settings, and the Department of Corrections. Across the past three years of the grant, over 22,000 Rhode Islanders have been screened. Over 15% screened positive for risky alcohol and/or substance use and were able to receive an intervention, such as education or a referral for treatment. A sample of patients who screened positive are followed up with 6 months later and re-screened. The data show an average of a 40% decrease in the number of days in the last month using substances. 
National Primary Care Survey Results: Nov. 13-17
As CTC-RI continues encouraging RI provider participation in the Larry A. Green Center / Primary Care Collaborative 3-minute clinician surveys to better understand the response and capacity of the US primary care practices through COVID-19, results are being shared from the survey fielded November 13-17. According to the results, for months, medical groups have raised alarms about the escalating consequences on patients of failing to adequately support primary care during the pandemic: excess mortality, preventable worsening of non-COVID related health conditions, high levels of mental anguish, growing social needs, and surging pandemic misinformation. The impact of inaction is clear. More than half of clinicians report severe/near severe levels of practice stress and growing patient health burden due to delayed or inaccessible care. Nine months in, COVID-19 is again surging, 63% of practices have staff out due to illness or quarantine, 1 in 5 lack sufficient testing supplies, and over half report increased patient distrust of medical information from public leaders. View the executive summary here and RI-specific results here.
In the News
Rhode Island Medical Society announces 2020-2021 leadership
Elizabeth Graham, Providence Business News
October 29, 2020

PROVIDENCE – The Rhode Island Medical Society has announced new leadership for 2020-2021, including its president, president-elect and vice president. Dr. Elizabeth Lange, a pediatrician at Waterman Pediatrics, was named president-elect. Lange is a founder of the Care Transformation Collaborative for Kids and a member of the Primary Care Physician Advisory Committee at the R.I. Department of Health. Dr. Thomas Bledsoe, an internist at Brown Medicine, is the medical society’s new vice president. Bledsoe is a former governor of the American College of Physicians. Read the full article here.
Fighting COVID, an equal opportunity SOB
Richard Asinof, Convergence RI
November 9, 2020

An interview with three public health community heroes from the Providence Community Health Centers being honored this week for their efforts to combat the coronavirus pandemic in the neighborhoods they serve. Read the full article here.
Center for Health Care Strategies Blog
November 9, 2020

Rhode Island is a great place to be a kid. Children and families in the state excel at key indicators of good health, strong families, and quality early learning experiences. An estimated 98 percent of Rhode Island children have health insurance coverage, and most kindergartners are immunized at rates that exceed national standards. This success is a result of a long-standing commitment to children’s health and critical statewide infrastructure that supports ongoing focus on children, including a comprehensive children’s information system called KIDSNET, a dedicated Children’s Cabinet, an Early Learning Council, and an ongoing pediatric medical home initiative. Read the full blog post here.
Practice Resources
CTC-RI List of Resources for Community, Fitness, Counseling Support, Stress Management, Volunteering, and More
Please reference CTC-RI's growing list of resources throughout the community.

Coping with COVID: 3-Part Virtual Training Series for Youth and Young Adults
Sponsored by the RI Dept. of Health Youth Advisory Council, this 3-part series will share tools and strategies to manage the unexpected changes and uncertainties brought by the pandemic. The free series will hold events on Nov. 30, Dec. 7, and Dec. 14 from 6:30-7:30pm.

Job Opportunity: Licensed Mental Health Counselors and Clinical Social Workers
Quality Behavioral Health, a progressive outpatient psychiatric and psychotherapeutic group in Warwick, RI, is seeking to add Licensed Mental Health Counselors and Licensed Clinical Social Workers to its staff. Details here.

Alzheimer’s Association RI Chapter: Annual Brian R. Ott, MD Research Symposium with Guest Speaker
This year's symposium on Dec. 3 at 5:30pm, “The science of Alzheimer’s disease clinical trial recruitment," will focus on the following learning objectives: distinguishing the effects of currently available therapies from those in development; naming the main barriers to efficient accrual in Alzheimer’s disease clinical trials and describe the need for an evidence base of recruitment science in Alzheimer’s disease clinical trials; and recognizing the scientific and ethical implications of recruitment success in Alzheimer’s disease clinical trials.

RI Dept. of Health DTTAC Advance Webinars
As a Lifestyle Coach, Program Coordinator, or Master Trainer offering the National DPP in Rhode Island, you are invited to register for DTTAC Advance™ webinars for free. The next live webinar will be held on Dec. 8 at 1pm, and on-demand webinars are also available. Learn more here.

Collaboratives in Action: Responding to COVID-19 webinar series 
A recorded of this recent "Collaboratives in Action" webinar is available, where CTC-RI reviewed how adult and pediatric primary care practices have created the new normal for integrated behavioral health (IBH); discussed how data comparing pre-COVID to post-COVID for IBH and Social Determinants of Health had impacted decision-making; and analyzed how staffing and burnout had impacted Rhode Island primary care practices with IBH. Access the recording and supporting resources here.

AARP Presentation Now Available: Redefining Livability In a Virtual World
COVID stay-in-place orders and social distancing mandates have limited in-person connectivity, bringing to the forefront the importance of access to technology to stay connected to family, friends and one’s community. Organizations in Rhode Island have identified the need to bring technology access and know-how to older adults and are piloting innovative programs. This virtual forum now available on demand (passcode: weW%.d3x) highlights this great work and continues the discussion of what else needs be done and what are the challenges (i.e., feeling safe and secure in the virtual world). Discussion includes community partners (including CTC-RI), government officials and Rhode Island residents.

The ADA for Healthcare Providers: A Virtual Training
The Americans with Disabilities Act applies to small and large healthcare providers, from sole practitioners to large hospitals. These free trainings will discuss the obligations under the ADA from service animals to sign language interpreters to COVID-19 mask requirements to ensure that people with disabilities can get to access the care they need to live heathy live, as well as Dept. of Justice settlement agreements and scenarios to illustrate requirements. Two dates are available to register for: Dec. 1 at 10am and Dec. 9 at 10am.
Upcoming Meetings (for CTC-RI members)
December 03, 07:30-08:00AM - Virtual Coffee Break with Dr Pat Flanagan & Dr Beth Lange
December 04, 07:30-08:45AM - Board of Directors Meeting
December 04, 07:30-08:45AM - CHT Oversight Meeting - Building Community Clinical Linkages
December 10, 07:30-09:00AM - Quarterly Integrated Behavioral Health Committee Meeting
December 11, 07:30-09:00AM - Quarterly CTC-RI Breakfast of Champions
December 11, 09:30-11:00AM - Community Health Team Best Practice Meeting
December 15, 08:00-09:30AM - Care Manager/Coordinator Best Practice Sharing Meeting
December 16, 08:00-10:00AM - Care+Community+Equity (CCE) Best Practice Sharing Meeting
December 17, 03:00-04:30PM - SBIRT/CHT Executive Committee
December 18, 07:30-09:30AM - Clinical Strategy Committee Meeting
December 18, 09:00-10:00AM - Community Health Team Expansion Quarterly Best Practice Sharing Meeting
Care Transformation Collaborative of RI | ctc-ri@ctc-ri.org | ctc-ri.org