Contact: Ross Goldberg
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
818-597-8453, x-1
ross@kevinross.net
[Printable Version]

(BURBANK, Calif. – January 12, 2015) — Strategic Health Group announced today that it has been engaged by Indiana University to assist in creating a business development strategy for the Medical Center’s GRACE Team Care™ program. GRACE – Geriatric Resources for the Assessment and Care of Elders – represents a fresh approach and a new model of care for effectively managing the health and well – being of high – risk Medicare populations.

At present, GRACE Team Care is offered through the Medicare Advantage program of Indiana University Health Plans and is being successfully applied at several other health plans, medical groups and VA hospitals in select markets around the country. “We turned to Strategic Health Group to help us build upon this success and uncover new avenues of serving the Medicare market, particularly low-income seniors, dual eligibles and others with complex medical and social needs,” said Steven Counsell, M.D., executive director GRACE Team Care program and a professor of medicine at the IU School of Medicine.

As it has done for other healthcare clients around the country, SHG is working with GRACE to explore ways to optimize its value, grow its business, and create a sustainable business model for a GRACE training resource center. They are also providing assistance in developing a marketing and branding strategy, working in concert with business partner Kevin/Ross Public Relations.

For this assignment SHG brings a unique and deep expertise with organizations serving the geriatric population, which Counsell calls “invaluable in truly understanding our business proposition and our target markets.” SHG Managing Directors Hank Osowski and Dennis Eder are national thought leaders in this space and have helped many health plans, medical groups and hospitals formulate winning strategies to successfully serve this market. In addition, both Osowski and Eder held leadership positions with large Medicare Advantage health plans prior to forming SHG in 2011.

“With Medicare-eligible citizens now representing the fastest-growing segment of the American population, it has never been more critical to find new approaches for enhancing quality of geriatric care in ways that result in higher quality of life and lower healthcare costs,” said Osowski. “GRACE has proven to do just that, and we are anxious to help this program fulfill its true potential and continue to make a positive impact on this market.”

The GRACE program goes well beyond traditional care coordination by demonstrating how a high-intensity care-team approach outside of the hospital setting can improve the patient experience, optimize health and functional status, decrease excess healthcare use, and prevent long-term nursing home placement. Its efficacy in smartly coordinating care for vulnerable seniors has been documented in a 2014 study from Avalere Health as well as in recent articles in JAMA, Health Affairs, the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society and many other places. Further information on GRACE may be obtained at http://graceteamcare.indiana.edu.

Strategic Health Group provides healthcare organizations with consulting services across a wide spectrum of needs including strategic planning, corporate finance and treasury, marketing communications, actuarial services, human capital, and many others. SHG is also available to help organizations with mergers, acquisitions and divestitures, financial and operational turnarounds, interim executive management, and business planning and budgeting. For more information, visit us at www.strategichealthgroup.com.

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