Colorado State Innovation Model (SIM)
Monthly Newsletter
June, 2016
In This Issue
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Register to Attend the Colorado Medical Home Community Forum

The Colorado Medical Home Initiative invites all medical home stakeholders including you, your colleagues, families, policy makers and organization/agency staff to attend the  Medical Home Community Forum on 
Tuesday, June 14, 2016, 
4:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.

The theme of the forum will be supporting integrated care, and will include presentations from:
  • Barbara Martin, SIM Office Director
  • Kyle Knierim, MD, University of Colorado
  • Ellen Kaufmann, Health Care Policy and Financing
  • Tonya Aultman-Bettridge, TriWest Group
  • David Bartsch, TriWest Group
  • Susan Mathieu, ACC Program, Health Care Policy and Financing

For questions or more information please email Anne Jones at:  [email protected]
Register to Attend an Informational Webinar on TCPi

TCPi Colorado Practice Transformation Network presents an opportunity for 2,000 clinicians in Colorado to receive practice support as they prepare for new payment models. All physicians, primary care and specialists, are encouraged to stay up to date on Medicare payment reform and consider taking advantage of this federally-funded support to help their practice thrive in the evolving health care landscape.

The SIM Office will be hosting a series of informational webinars and encourage anyone who is interested in learning more about TCPi to register. 

The dates of the webinars and registration links can be found online at:  www.colorado.gov/healthinnovation/tcpi

For questions please email: [email protected] 
SIM-Funded Regional Health Connectors Request for Proposals

The Colorado Regional Health Connectors program is soliciting proposals from local organizations throughout the state to host a Regional Health Connector (RHC). The final request for proposals  (RFP) containing program activities, contractual requirements and proposal instructions was released June 1, 2016.
 
Proposals from interested applicants are due July 1, 2016. Approximately $3.3 million will be awarded, with each Host receiving up to $220,000 for a funding period of 28 months, between October 2016 and January 2019. Selected host organizations (Hosts) will be notified on August 12, 2016.
 
RHC Program staff will host weekly calls throughout June to respond to questions about the RFP. The schedule is available here.
 
Click here to view the RHC Host Organization Request for Proposals
Working Together to Prevent Suicide in Colorado
 
The Colorado legislature took action this year to reduce Colorado's high suicide rate, encouraging health care systems to adopt an approach that could dramatically reduce the suicide rate in Colorado.

SB16-147  establishes the  Zero Suicide Model  within the Office of Suicide Prevention at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and encourages health care systems to adopt the Zero Suicide model. It also provides training for mental health and primary care providers in managing suicide risk.

The health system framework, based on  an initiative developed at Detroit's Henry Ford Health System, teaches seven elements of quality improvement that primary and behavioral health care systems can adopt to keep high-risk individuals from falling through the cracks. Evidence shows that practices adhering to the model can reduce suicide rates by as much as 80 percent for patients within their care. 
 
Colorado practices and facilities can attend a June 23-24  interactive workshop for the framework by applying  here and mental health providers can support the initiative by responding to a survey here .

If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health crisis or is in need of support or resources, please contact the Colorado Crisis Support Line 1-800-493-TALK (8255), or text "TALK" to 38255. Recovery is possible and help is available 24/7/365.
Telehealth Funding Opportunity from the Colorado Health Foundation

The Colorado Health Foundation is accepting applications for a funding opportunity that will support primary care delivery by increasing access to comprehensive, coordinated care through telehealth services. The goal of this initiative is to build capacity in primary care or safety net clinics for the implementation of telehealth services.

The Foundation will support grant funds up to $100,000 for costs associated with the purchase of telehealth equipment and/or the employment of workflow or billing consultants. The grants will have a two-year term to allow for adequate time to accomplish important milestones and learn how providers and patients were able to use and bill for telehealth services. Low-interest loans may be available to private practices that meet specific criteria.  

Applications and additional information are available at:
http://www.coloradohealth.org/yellow.aspx?id=8262
SIM Website Survey
 
If you have visited the  SIM website recently, you may have noticed several changes to the layout of the site. These changes are intended improve the experience of the user, and are largely based on feedback received from members of the stakeholder community.  The SIM Office is committed to making the website as efficient and useful as possible, and is interested in hearing from you.

In the News

Centre for Mental Health and UCL Institute of Education

SIM is on Twitter
 
The SIM Office is on Twitter! Follow us @SIM_Colorado to read about how Colorado is transforming the way health care is delivered, and stay up to date with the latest SIM news.