Understanding HDCs

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	Understanding Health Disparities Collaborative (HDC)
	Please click or scroll down for: HDC Method HDC Process Learning Sessions and Application Information National Measures Back to Top HDC METHOD The Collaborative method combines two models to achieve its results. The first is the Chronic Care Model, developed by Ed Wagner, Director of the MacColl Institute for Healthcare Innovation at Group Health Cooperative of Puget Sound in Seattle, WA. The second is the Model for Improvement developed by the Institute of Healthcare Improvement (IHI) in Cambridge, MA, that utilizes rapid change techniques to facilitate process improvement. Since 1998, this method has been successfully implemented in over five hundred health centers nationwide to improve the care of patients with chronic diseases. A distinctive feature of the Collaborative method is the focus on patients' needs and self-management abilities as drivers of heath change efforts. Community health centers participating in the Collaborative will learn and implement an organizational approach to caring for people with a chronic disease in a primary health care setting. This approach is population-based, patient focused, and uses treatment strategies that have been proven effective in clinical practice. In this way, participating organizations will begin to implement a system-wide chronic disease management model. This strategy assumes that health centers are not bound by the current system, that they can effect changes identified as useful, and that they desire a system that is efficient, effective, and satisfying for both patients and staff. Back to Top HDC PROCESS Community health centers participating in the Collaborative work together intensely for thirteen months. During that time, organizations will participate in four two-day Learning Sessions and maintain continual contact with each other, the Collaborative leadership team and expert faculty members through email, websites, conference calls, and site visits. Learning Sessions are the major integrative events of the Collaborative. Through plenary sessions, small group discussions, and team meetings attendees have the opportunity to: Learn from expert faculty and colleagues Receive individual coaching from expert faculty members and colleagues Gather new knowledge on the subject matter and process improvement Share experiences and collaborate on improvement plans Problem-solve improvement barriers The time between Learning Sessions is called an Action Period. During Action Periods, Collaborative team members work within their organizations to test and implement a comprehensive approach to caring for people with chronic disease. Although participants focus on their own organizations, they remain in continuous contact with other teams enrolled in the Collaborative, the Collaborative Directors/Coordinators, and faculty. The teams share the results of their improvement efforts in monthly reports submitted to the Collaborative Directors/Coordinators in their cluster. Back to Top LEARNING SESSIONS AND APPLICATION INFORMATION For more information on upcoming Collaboratives, learning sessions or to apply, link to the National HDC Website. Back to Top NATIONAL MEASURES Centers participating in Collaboratives agree to adopt shared national measures, as well as local measures based on proven guidelines. For lists of the national measures for each topic, click on the topic names below: • Asthma • Cancer • Cardiovascular Disease • Depression • Diabetes • Prevention Back to Top