Springfield surgical hospital, pharmacies team on new wellness program
In light of recent declining health rankings in both
"We'd rather have them spend money on hiring people and adding jobs," Eisentrager said. "We just see so much money wasted in health care. It would be nice for those dollars to go to hiring people for jobs versus unnecessary services and things like that."
As part of the program, surgical hospital employees will be provided assistance from local pharmacists in battling diabetes or other health problems, in conjunction with doctors.
The hospital spends more than
Similar pharmacy partnerships have worked at other businesses outside of
"Health care is becoming so expensive and so out of control, it's refreshing to have simple solutions that are making a difference," Eisentrager said. "It's definitely nice to have a simple model we know has worked in other communities."
The plan was formulated by
"It's an opportunity (for the patient) to re-engage the pharmacist for accountability on are they taking medications correctly," Sweeney said. "It's a 360 approach for improving health care using the touch point of the pharmacy."
Pharmacists will use a Kindle tablet at each location to gather information on
The program will allow pharmacists to use their clinical knowledge, said
"They're getting a lot of clinical training that a lot of programs like this will bring out," Juergens said. "It's not simply just filling out prescriptions, but taking care of people as well."
The program can also be customized to battle different diseases, he said.
The pharmacies will also be able to perform lab work, said
"It's a well-thought out program to help manage those disease states," Martin said.
About 70 percent of employers here use a self-funded health insurance model, Eisentrager said. Rather than paying premiums to a health insurance provider, the company directly pays its insurance for its employees. The largest line item is typically prescription costs, he said.
Very few people may have chronic conditions, Eisentrager said, but the small percentage of employees who do often make up the majority of health care costs.
"(The program) helps manage the drug costs, but more importantly it keeps that person healthy and not finding themselves in a cataclysmic event because they're not managed," Eisentrager said.
The challenge of improving
"Turning something that's challenging for the community into something really positive is our goal," he said.
Once the program begins to show positive results, other businesses will move to emulate it, Juergens said.
"Let's face it, in the new millennium, we're all about wellness," he said. "You hear it everywhere. To be a part of that is a good thing. Programs like this will become popular and successful because it will work."
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By the numbers
250: Employees at the
6: Number of local pharmacies participating in wellness initiative.
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