Shows
Policy in Plainer EnglishHunger Vital Sign Epilogue: Ongoing ResearchDr. Ana Poblacion and Richard Sheward discuss recent research related to measuring food insecurity, and how ongoing research supports better strategies to reduce food insecurity & its associated health risks. This episode features development & validation of a scale measuring changing levels of food security in households with young children. The work was funded with a small USDA research grant and presented as part of marking 25 years of household food security measurement. Research presentations from all projects supported as part of this 25th anniversary are found at: https://sites.tufts.edu/foodsec25/ For the full Hunger Vital Sig...
2022-12-2025 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishEvaluating the AHC ModelFind all supporting materials at the Hunger Vital Sign explainer series website.This episode features an interview with Katherine Verlander, Deputy Division Director at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)Part One of this series featured Children's HealthWatch - find their Hunger Vital Sign materials and background research here.Part Two of this series featured Hunger Free Vermont and their work implementing Hunger Vital Sign in Vermont.Part Three of the series introduces the screening, referral, and navigation services evaluated as part of the Accountable Health Communities Model at the...
2022-08-0813 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishThe Accountable Health Communities ModelFind all supporting materials at the Hunger Vital Sign explainer series website.This episode features an interview with Katherine Verlander, Deputy Division Director at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)Part One of this series featured Children's HealthWatch - find their Hunger Vital Sign materials and background research here.Part Two of this series featured Hunger Free Vermont and their work implementing Hunger Vital Sign in Vermont.Part Three of the series introduces the screening, referral, and navigation services evaluated as part of the Accountable Health Communities Model at the...
2022-08-0717 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishThe CMS Innovation CenterFind all supporting materials at the Hunger Vital Sign explainer series website.This episode features an interview with Katherine Verlander, Deputy Division Director at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)Part One of this series featured Children's HealthWatch - find their Hunger Vital Sign materials and background research here.Part Two of this series featured Hunger Free Vermont and their work implementing Hunger Vital Sign in Vermont.Part Three of the series introduces the screening, referral, and navigation services evaluated as part of the Accountable Health Communities Model at the...
2022-08-0614 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishIntroduction to Part 3: Accountable Health CommunitiesThe Hunger Vital Sign explainer series continues with an introduction to the Accountable Health Communities (AHC) Model at the CMS Innovation Center. This model is testing the results of screening for health-related social needs and offering referral and navigation services to community resources in a health care setting. The Hunger Vital Sign questions make up the food security portion of the AHC screening tool, and food insecurity has been the most common identified need. The guest expert for this section is Katherine Verlander, Deputy Division Director at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)....
2022-08-0505 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishHunger Free Vermont, Hunger Vital Sign & The Bigger PictureFind all supporting materials at the Hunger Vital Sign explainer series website.This episode features an interview with Katy Davis, Community Health Initiatives Director at Hunger Free Vermont.Part One of this series featured Children's HealthWatch - find their Hunger Vital Sign materials and background research here.Audio Editing and Post-Production Provided By Evergreen Audio
2022-07-0414 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishConversations About Food InsecurityFind all supporting materials at the Hunger Vital Sign explainer series website.This episode features an interview with Katy Davis, Community Health Initiatives Director at Hunger Free Vermont.Part One of this series featured Children's HealthWatch - find their Hunger Vital Sign materials and background research here.Audio Editing and Post-Production Provided By Evergreen Audio
2022-07-0313 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishPartnering With Hunger Free VermontFind all supporting materials at the Hunger Vital Sign explainer series website. This episode features an interview with Katy Davis, Community Health Initiatives Director at Hunger Free Vermont. Part One of this series featured Children's HealthWatch - find their Hunger Vital Sign materials and background research here. Audio Editing and Post-Production Provided By Evergreen Audio
2022-07-0215 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishValidity / Reliability / Usefulness As Hunger Vital Sign ExpandsFind all supporting materials at the Hunger Vital Sign explainer series website. This episode features an interview with Richard Sheward, Director of Innovative Partnerships at Children's HealthWatch. Citation for the Hunger Vital Sign tool and link to the original research:Hager, E. R., Quigg, A. M., Black, M. M., Coleman, S. M., Heeren, T., Rose-Jacobs, R., Cook, J. T., Ettinger de Cuba, S. E., Casey, P. H., Chilton, M., Cutts, D. B., Meyers A. F., Frank, D. A. (2010). Development and Validity of a 2-Item Screen to Identify Families at Risk for Food Insecurity. P...
2022-06-1211 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishIs Hunger Vital Sign Useful?Find all supporting materials at the Hunger Vital Sign explainer series website. This episode features an interview with Richard Sheward, Director of Innovative Partnerships at Children's HealthWatch. Citation for the Hunger Vital Sign tool and link to the original research:Hager, E. R., Quigg, A. M., Black, M. M., Coleman, S. M., Heeren, T., Rose-Jacobs, R., Cook, J. T., Ettinger de Cuba, S. E., Casey, P. H., Chilton, M., Cutts, D. B., Meyers A. F., Frank, D. A. (2010). Development and Validity of a 2-Item Screen to Identify Families at Risk for Food Insecurity. P...
2022-06-1112 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishHunger Vital Sign & Creating a Reliable ToolFind all supporting materials at the Hunger Vital Sign explainer series website. This episode features an interview with Richard Sheward, Director of Innovative Partnerships at Children's HealthWatch. Citation for the Hunger Vital Sign tool and link to the original research:Hager, E. R., Quigg, A. M., Black, M. M., Coleman, S. M., Heeren, T., Rose-Jacobs, R., Cook, J. T., Ettinger de Cuba, S. E., Casey, P. H., Chilton, M., Cutts, D. B., Meyers A. F., Frank, D. A. (2010). Development and Validity of a 2-Item Screen to Identify Families at Risk for Food Insecurity. P...
2022-06-1014 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishHunger Vital Sign ValidationFind all supporting materials at the Hunger Vital Sign explainer series website. This episode features an interview with Richard Sheward, Director of Innovative Partnerships at Children's HealthWatch. Citation for the Hunger Vital Sign tool and link to the original research:Hager, E. R., Quigg, A. M., Black, M. M., Coleman, S. M., Heeren, T., Rose-Jacobs, R., Cook, J. T., Ettinger de Cuba, S. E., Casey, P. H., Chilton, M., Cutts, D. B., Meyers A. F., Frank, D. A. (2010). Development and Validity of a 2-Item Screen to Identify Families at Risk for Food Insecurity. P...
2022-06-0912 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishHunger Vital Sign & Risk Screening ToolsFind all supporting materials at the Hunger Vital Sign explainer series website. This episode features an interview with Richard Sheward, Director of Innovative Partnerships at Children's HealthWatch. Citation for the Hunger Vital Sign tool and link to the original research:Hager, E. R., Quigg, A. M., Black, M. M., Coleman, S. M., Heeren, T., Rose-Jacobs, R., Cook, J. T., Ettinger de Cuba, S. E., Casey, P. H., Chilton, M., Cutts, D. B., Meyers A. F., Frank, D. A. (2010). Development and Validity of a 2-Item Screen to Identify Families at Risk for Food Insecurity. P...
2022-06-0813 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishOrigin of Hunger Vital SignFind all supporting materials at the Hunger Vital Sign explainer series website. This episode features an interview with Richard Sheward, Director of Innovative Partnerships at Children's HealthWatch. Citation for the Hunger Vital Sign tool and link to the original research:Hager, E. R., Quigg, A. M., Black, M. M., Coleman, S. M., Heeren, T., Rose-Jacobs, R., Cook, J. T., Ettinger de Cuba, S. E., Casey, P. H., Chilton, M., Cutts, D. B., Meyers A. F., Frank, D. A. (2010). Development and Validity of a 2-Item Screen to Identify Families at Risk for Food Insecurity. Ped...
2022-06-0711 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishHunger Vital Sign Series IntroductionWe're doing something a little different - this series of podcast episodes are a set of conversations explaining the Hunger Vital Sign risk screening tool. They're designed as part of a larger resource with reference materials, key point summaries, and implementation toolkits:https://www.vtfoodinhealth.net/hunger-vital-sign-toolkitIf you aren't interested in Hunger Vital Sign, we promised playlists for other entertainment. Here are two:Season Four Extended Playlist - Food & HealthStatistics, Data, Health
2022-06-0703 min
Here's the ProblemThe Intersection of Healthcare & Agriculture w/ Helen LabunTo explore the intersection of agriculture and healthcare, we're talking to Helen Labun. Helen is the program manager for the Food Access and Healthcare Consortium, which works to integrate food and healthcare in Vermont. Helen’s background spans economics, public policy and even the restaurant industry! With all of this experience, Helen highlights how food access and agriculture integrate with healthcare, the challenges of rural access to care and how access to healthy foods is the responsibility of multiple industries, not just healthcare.
2022-02-2850 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishSeason Four FinaleA season finale. . . with special guests! Edward Phillips, MD, and Juna Gjata, creators of the podcast Food, We Need to Talk, join us to comment on common themes between the two series, and suggest what should be next in your food & health podcast listening line up. The first season of Food, We Need to Talk is available online. Two episodes cited specifically in this conversation were: This Is Your Brain on Cheesecake and Disordered Eating and Eating Disorders. We also talked about what makes a "fad" diet and common characteristics of popular diets that don't support sustainable h...
2022-02-2339 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishBuilding a TeamThis episode brings back previous guests and features a new interview with Christine Hamann, Director of the Teaching Kitchen Collaborative, to talk about cross training and collaboration. It continues our series of episodes that consider how to effectively introduce the food knowledge outlined in the first half of the season into a health care context. Christine references two conferences in this episode:Healthy Kitchens, Healthy Lives (next event is in February 2023)Teaching Kitchen Research Conference (next event is in October 2022)We feature clips from these previous episodes:Telehealth and Provider Consultations (Season Two)Food A...
2022-02-0925 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishFood as We AgeWe talk with Chris Moldovan, RD, CD, FAND, and Director of Nutrition and Wellness at Age Well, an Area Agency on Aging in northwestern Vermont. Chris is also part of the Older Vermonters Nutrition Coalition. She provides examples of how our relationship with food and diet shifts with age, and explains how organizations like hers help people navigate changing requirements for nutrition.Some of the resources referenced in this episode:Medically Tailored Meals (episode from Season 3)National Meals on Wheels Organization - Health Care ConnectionsFood Is Medicine for Older Adults - December, 2021, Symposium SessionProfile of Hospital...
2022-01-2825 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishHow to CookProfessor Amy Trubek, and instructors John Corliss and Emily Barbour, join us to talk about core principles of the courses they are developing in the Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences at the University of Vermont. Their curriculum combines sensory analysis with basic cooking skills to increase food agency. Some resources referenced in this episode:Food Agency Website - including a course in Culinary Nutrition that is offered to interested health professionals through UVM Continuing Education. The Google project on learning to make vegetables delicious. See also the Plant Forward Kitchen from the Culinary Institute of Am...
2022-01-1122 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishFood JournalsWriter Alexandra Johnson helps us get the new year off to a strong start. Among the things she writes about is the practice of journaling to support creativity. You know what we'll all need to put into practice food appreciation as a tool to become adaptable in our diets? Creativity. It's time to redefine how we think about food journals - these aren't the standard food logs of calories and serving sizes, Alex is helping us define a different tool entirely. No surprise, we referenced a lot of writing over the course of this conversation. Here are so...
2022-01-0526 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishA Pause to Think BiggerIn a special year-end episode, we reverse directions. This season is about bringing skills from food professionals to bear on how we shape our individual diet, but what about moving the other way - from individuals to commercial scale production? The main lesson from this episode is to listen to the Mission ImPASTAble podcast series (thank you to the Sporkful for permission to use the clips we play). You can find the series online.We also reference several previous Policy in Plainer English episodes, including Medically Tailored Meals and the Health Care Systems introduction to s...
2021-12-2824 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishPutting Appreciation Into PracticeWe interview two chefs, Dale Conoscenti and Leah Pryor, about how to take all the food appreciation skills we've covered in the last episodes, and apply them to shaping what goes on our dinner plates. This episode mentions the 'sounds of water pouring' experiment, which NPR reported on in 2014, and then sound engineers got geeky about deconstructing. A more famous experiment is the effect of sound on how we perceive chips as stale or fresh. . . less interesting audio for a podcast since that experiment focused on not hearing the crunch. The impact of sound on food design i...
2021-12-1625 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishAll You Need to Know About Flavor AppreciationToday it's all you need to know about flavor appreciation . . . or at least it's all you need to know to follow along the rest of this season. Nonetheless. We're bringing it all together in an interview with David Keck, Master Sommelier and wine maker at Stella14, who promises us that there's nothing to be intimidated by in the world of elite wine tasting. (Show Notes Update: Stella14 is now open to the public).This episode highlights key take aways from the previous two interviews. If you haven't listened to those, pause and listen to those first. It...
2021-12-0319 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishWhat Makes a Food Popular?Sensory professional Roy Desrochers explains how food producers can use flavor profiling methods to understand why consumers respond the way they do to products and how to make their food more appealing. Roy has had a long career in food, flavor, and smell – he is currently running a grass fed milk project with University of Vermont Extension. We also get a few truffle reminders from last episode’s guest, Rowan Jacobsen. If you haven’t heard that episode yet, it’s best to start there. This episode mentions the spaghetti sauce TED Talk by Malcolm Gladwell (a...
2021-11-2220 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishHow We Experience FlavorAuthor Rowan Jacobsen is the guest on this introduction to how we experience flavor, and the implications when something changes that experience - for example, if we lose our sense of smell. Rowan's most recent book is Truffle Hound. If you want a primer in describing flavors, try his Apples of Uncommon Character as a study guide - it would be a nice companion to the apple chapter of Michael Pollan's Botany of Desire, which provided the passage on sweetness read during this episode. If you want to learn more about Thanksgiving Dinner Candy Corn, t...
2021-11-1217 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishBonus Intro: Designing Better Health Care SystemsWith some commentator's license, this episode uses a presentation by Dr. Shantanu Nundy to set the stage for a new season of discussing food and health care. It reviews key concepts from previous podcast seasons and considers changes to the systems for primary care that we might see in the near future. Thank you to the Northeast Telehealth Resource Center and Dr. Nundy for permission to use this audio, which is taken from the closing presentation at the 7th Annual NETRC conference. Commentary added by the Policy in Plainer English podcast is our own and does not ne...
2021-11-0326 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishSeason Four. . . Coming SoonThe Policy in Plainer English podcast is returning this fall! And it's going deeper on the food access and health care topic. Want to catch up ahead of the next season? Here are some concepts from Season Three that will be important:Lifestyle Medicine Part 1Lifestyle Medicine Part 2Children and Healthy EatingMedically Tailored MealsAnd you can find many more resources (in written format) at the site VTFoodInHealth.net.
2021-09-3007 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishFood and Health Care - Season FinaleWe're wrapping up our series on food and health care with a conversation with Georgia Maheras of Bi-State Primary Care Association. If you'd like to browse all the episodes in this series, we've linked them below in order. This season the episodes built on each other more than in our previous series, so we recommend taking it from the top and working your way through: Food & Health - An IntroductionHunger Screening - Part 1Hunger Screening - Part 2Predicting Food InsecurityCare CoordinationCare Navigator Help Me GrowBonus: Panel on Connecting to Food ResourcesFood and TransportationMedically Tailored MealsLifestyle Medicine - Pa...
2021-05-0425 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishFood Prescription ProgramIn our final example of a food in health care project, we welcome guests Chelsey Canavan and Natalie Romano from Dartmouth-Hitchcock and Jennifer Fontaine from the Upper Valley Haven to discuss a new Food Prescription pilot.You may have also heard of Produce Prescriptions, which are a way for health care practices to help patients increase their fruit and vegetable consumption. Produce Prescriptions have a variety of sources for support, including from the USDA, and you can read examples of different forms these programs take here. This Food Prescription project includes plenty of produce, but provides a...
2021-04-1918 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishChildren and Healthy EatingThis episode we talk with two people leading programs that engage with children around topics in healthy eating: Koi Boynton, from Healthy Roots Collaborative, and Emmy Wollenburg, from RiseVT speaking about Dinner Together. If you're interested in programs designed to help children access healthy food, our earlier episode on Help Me Grow also touched on this topic. In this episode, Koi mentions that Farm-to-School is a long-established approach in Vermont - which is true, we are one of the leading states in the country in farm-to-school programming. To learn more about Farm-to-School resources, check out...
2021-04-0518 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishLifestyle Medicine - Part 2You will find important context and links at the first half of this 2-part episode on Lifestyle Medicine, so if you haven't checked that out, there's no time like the present. This episode features a conversation with the Lifestyle Medicine team at Springfield Medical Care Systems - Laura Jensen, Adam Ameele, Scott Durgin. It also mentions RiseVT, which funds part of Laura's position and helped with some elements of starting the SMCS program (which began with a HRSA supplemental grant for FQHCs). Another item mentioned in this episode is what determines the flavors...
2021-03-2214 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishLifestyle Medicine - Part 1In the first of two episodes on Lifestyle Medicine, we interview Dr. Elisabeth Fontaine and Dr. Scott Durgin. They provide background on the Lifestyle Medicine framework, which will set us up to talk to more members of the Lifestyle Medicine team at Springfield Medical Care Systems about how they're implementing support of a plant-based, whole food centered diet with their patients. That's Part 2 and it will be great, so be prepared by listening to this one first.Links mentioned in this episode include:American College of Lifestyle Medicine - Which includes the diagram of the six...
2021-03-1416 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishMedically Tailored MealsThis episode we welcome David Waters, CEO of Community Servings, to our show. Community Servings is a Massachusetts-based Medically Tailored Meals (MTM) program that is also a leader in the national Food is Medicine Coalition. Community Servings was founded in 1990 to serve local Dorchester and Roxbury residents struggling with HIV / AIDS. It is now a regional organization serving 15 different meal plans to 2,300 patients at a time. You may have heard them mentioned in previous discussions not only for their role in MTMs, but also the Massachusetts State Food Plan. You can access that plan from the Food i...
2021-02-2416 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishBonus Episode: The Future of Audio-Only Health Services[Update to this episode: You can read the July, 2021, rule on audio-only telehealth reimbursement from the Dept. of Financial Regulation here] The Policy in Plainer English podcast had been taking a break between seasons, but we return now briefly to bring you this bonus episode on the future of using the telephone in health care. It is a summary of the report from the working group on audio-only telemedicine reimbursement in Vermont. But also we tell you the future of telehealth.Because we dream big in health care policy in Vermont. ...
2021-01-1117 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishFood and TransportationNot to be confused with our episode on Telehealth and Transportation, this episode is on Food and Transportation. . . perhaps we're adding up to a season on transportation. In this episode Faye Mack, of Hunger Free Vermont, and Maureen Boardman, of Little Rivers Health Care, join us to talk about how to tackle the related problems of barriers to transportation and barriers to food access.We mention a few additional tools and examples in the episode:Farm-to-Plate: Local Planning for Food AccessFarm-to-Plate: Resources for RetailersGeisinger Fresh Food Farmacy Presentation - From Bi-State's 2019 Clinical Quality SymposiumAnd w...
2020-12-1714 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishBonus Episode: Panel on Connecting to Food ResourcesOn November 19th, Bi-State Primary Care Association hosted a discussion with a large panel of organizations that help health care practices and their patients (and others, but we're health care focused) connect with food resources. They discussed how they have adjusted their programs in response to COVID-19. Much as the amount of audio to be edited for this episode exceeded my patience, so too did the amount of text for linking resources exceed the word limit on this podcast posting platform. You can access the full show notes at VTFoodInHealth.net.
2020-12-0741 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishHelp Me GrowThis episode features Janet Kilburn and Elizabeth Gilman discussing Help Me Grow, and the role this program's coordinative services play in helping families with young children connect to food resources.As noted in the podcast, connecting for food access is just one piece of what Help Me Grow does and if you want to learn more about all their programs please visit their website: helpmegrowvt.org. You may also want to explore a bit at Vermont 2-1-1, which is mentioned in the episode. This episode builds from the ones that went before it, and...
2020-12-0317 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishCare NavigatorWe continue our discussion of care coordination with Jodi Frei, of OneCare Vermont, and Patrick Clark, of Gifford Medical Center, and take a deep dive on a particular platform: Care Navigator. Care Navigator is part of a larger approach to Care Coordination at OneCare, and there's a lot of information if you want to learn more about it. The patient programs section of the OneCare website provides an overview of their care coordination work, including a chart showing what constitutes high / very high risk medically complex patients.The 2019 Annual Report explains how care...
2020-11-2218 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishCare CoordinationThe last several episodes went over the process of screening for food insecurity among patients at a health care practice. This episode gets into what happens next - and what happens next usually involves a care coordinator (or similar position). We have Kaylana Blindow (Bi-State Primary Care Association) and Laurie Somers (Northern Counties Health Care) guiding us through this episode.
2020-11-0914 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishPredicting Food InsecurityBefore moving on to Care Coordination as part of our series on accessing food resources, we're pausing for a quick look at using predictive analytics to assess which patients might be at risk of food insecurity and how to best reach them with resources they can use. This episode references several resources on this topic for learning more, so go check these out:The Weitzman Institute webinar series on using technology to address social determinants of health. The entire series is here. The two sessions referenced in this episode were an Introduction to Predictive Analytics and th...
2020-11-0206 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishHunger Screening - Part TwoThe second half our of episode on screening for hunger and food insecurity. . . and you can probably guess what these show notes are going to say: start with the first half! In this episode, our original guests (Kristen Bigelow-Talbert and Katy Davis) are joined by Christina Quinlan from Islands Community Medical Services, Inc. in Maine. The subtitle of this episode may be "in which Helen learns that three guest interviews is one guest too many for amateur podcasting." On the plus side, there's a lot of good information here about implementing hunger screening. Maybe be pr...
2020-10-1917 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishHunger Screening - Part OneKristen Bigelow-Talbert, from Bi-State Primary Care Association, and Katy Davis, from Hunger Free Vermont, discuss screening for hunger and food insecurity. If poor diet leads to poor health, and health care providers want their patients to stay well, then it makes sense that we would screen for poor diet just like we screen for high blood pressure, cholesterol, BMI, etc. - simple, right? Clearly not simple or we wouldn't be podcasting about it. This episode provides background on the interest in screening for hunger / other social factors in our overall health, and some considerations for selecting screening...
2020-10-1214 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishFood and Health - An IntroductionThis episode gives a short introduction to our topic for Season Three. If you want more background information on food access in general here are some good starting places:Feeding America - includes Hunger and Health exploring health connections and the Map the Gap site for statisticsFood Research and Action Center USDA Food Security - includes definitions of commonly used terms like "food insecurity"Food is Medicine Coalition - this is for a very specific area of food work, but it's useful to know as an example of food prescribed to treat particular diseasesNFACT - A UVM led p...
2020-10-0507 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishVPQHC Connectivity ProgramUpdate: The program described in this podcast is now live and accepting applications from Vermont practices until Oct 5: www.vpqhc.org/ccptelehealthvtIn a follow up to our telehealth series from this spring, we check in with Hillary Wolfley, Associate Director at the Vermont Program for Quality in Health Care on a new program designed to help patients cross the digital divide and access telehealth.Some additional links referenced in this episode:Our earlier episode on Broadband for Telehealth (May 14, 2020).Bi-State's Vermont Telehealth Resources Guide, which we update regularly. Recordings o...
2020-09-2109 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishIntroducing Season Three - Food Access and Health CareWe're leaving telehealth and entering the world of food . . . food and health care (although, as former director of a restaurant and farmer association, I'm happy to talk about any element of food that might be of interest). Before we completely exit the telehealth realm, I'm doing a few more quick updates and also reminding everyone that Bi-State Primary Care Association does track telehealth developments in a non-podcast format. Just hop over to our telehealth resource guide for all the updates and details you might ever want.https://televermont.atavist.com/telehealth-in-vermont
2020-09-1701 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishTelehealth in the Time of COVID-19 - Season FinaleWe're wrapping up our special series on telehealth with a conversation with Georgia Maheras of Bi-State Primary Care Association, where we hit on some of the highlights of what we discussed over the season.A few items referenced in this conversation that we have not previously linked are: VPQHC Twice-Weekly Telehealth Office Hours, I reference some early data which we discussed in a 2-part webinar series with VPQHC that will be posted here (June 11 & June 18), and we refer to the Milbank study on eConsults. For current federal guidelines, we recommend the Center for Connected Health...
2020-06-2830 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishTransportation and TelehealthThis episode starts where we probably would have started a telehealth series in normal, non-COVID-19 times . . . looking at telehealth as one of the tools available to help overcome transportation-based barriers to accessing health care. Chris Towne, of Northern Counties Health Care*, and Dr. Brian Bates, of Mountain Health Center, join us to discuss this issue.If you want to read more about options for public transit, including the state's plan for connecting patients to medical appointments, the Vermont Agency of Transportation released their Public Transit Policy Plan earlier this year. Slide 9 in this presentation shows...
2020-06-2315 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishTelehealth and Global BudgetsHere we check back in on a topic from Season One - global budgets. You may remember this as the final phase of our journey into value-based payment reform. But if this is the first time you've heard that phrase, never fear - we give a quick recap at the beginning. And an even shorter one here: A global budget means that instead of getting a fee for every service performed, health care providers or a network of health care providers (aka an Accountable Care Organization or ACO) get an annual budget designed to cover the costs o...
2020-06-0916 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishTelehealth and Provider ConsultationsIn this episode we're joined by Katie Marvin, MD, from Community Health Services of Lamoille Valley (CHSLV) and Jennifer Fenn, NP, from Northern Tier Center for Health (NOTCH) to talk about provider-to-provider connections through telehealth.One thing this episode doesn't touch on is what is reimbursable in these systems, which use specialist input to keep treatment in primary care. There's a mixture of reimbursable and non-reimbursable items in this conversation.eConsults are one form of "store and forward" telehealth - asynchronous connections that happen not in real time. In Vermont these were previously only reimbursable...
2020-06-0213 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishTeledentistryAt the end of last week, Governor Scott and the Vermont Department of Health authorized dental practices to start accepting non-emergency patients for the first time since the COVID-19 emergency began. Because of its aerosol generating procedures and the creation of droplets when performing work in mouths, dentistry has been particularly hard hit by this pandemic. Here we discuss some of the options available for remote work.This episode features Dr. Rachel Rivard, Dental Director at Community Health in Rutland, and Dr. Joe Errante, Vice President for Network and Clinical Strategies at Northeast Delta Dental. Thank you...
2020-05-2612 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishTelehealth Reimbursement & COVID-19 Part TwoOur second episode on Telehealth Reimbursement during COVID-19 looks at the systems used to set payment for telemedicine services. If you want more details on evolving Medicare telehealth billing guidance in response to COVID-19, see this video from CMS, updated on May 8th If you want lots of details on Medicare billing as it relates to FQHCs, visit the Bi-State Medicare Guidance page, which is regularly updated and contains links to key CMS documents. If you want to fact check the claim that this is the worst public health disaster since the advent...
2020-05-1713 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishBroadband for TelehealthThis episode tackles broadband deployment in Vermont and telehealth in approximately ten minutes. . . obviously, we don't include everything. Below are some links to help you learn more. We thank Clay Purvis and Rob Fish of the Vermont Department of Public Service for being generous with their time on this topic, and Northern Counties Health Care for sponsoring this special series on telehealth during COVID-19. Overview of what we mean by "high speed" (or any speed) InternetDept of Public Service (PSD) Broadband Availability MapsPSD Guide to Connectivity Resources in COVID-19PSD Guide to Connecting for Telehealth / Distant L...
2020-05-1410 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishTelehealth and the Telephone Epilogue - CCMIn an epilogue to the Telehealth and the Telephone episode (which got a little long on us) we present this quick look a specific program used by FQHCs and other practices, the Medicare Chronic Care Management Program. It’s useful to consider because of its emphasis on establishing a regular check-in with patients, and has been utilized to continue and increase those check-ins during COVID-19. Here, Nicole Keaty, an RN at Little Rivers Health Center, explains how she is using the program.Chronic care management as a general topic is much, much larger than this one program an...
2020-05-0509 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishTelehealth and the TelephoneThis episode of Policy in Plainer English tackles Telehealth and the Telephone, with Dr. Audrey Von Lepel (NOTCH) and Dr. Adam Greenlee (Community Health Centers of Burlington). We thank Northern Counties Health Care for supporting this series. For all the details you could ever want on telehealth during COVID-19, visit this provider resource page from Bi-State Primary Care Association. Update (4/30): Since this episode was first recorded, Medicare has adjusted audio-only telephone options, the telephone is still not a fully recognized option for delivering health care services during COVID-19, but it is much closer to being there. ...
2020-04-2816 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishTelehealth Reimbursement & COVID-19As foreshadowed in the previous episode, we can't go much further into exploring telehealth during COVID-19, and its prospects for being available after COVID-19, without discussing reimbursement. So here we dip our toes in.If you want to do more than toe-dip, the entire narration can be considered an audio introduction to this guide to telehealth expansion from Bi-State Primary Care Association, which you can read at your leisure. New rules get released pretty much daily, so if you follow this page you'll have plenty of updates to keep you entertained - it's regulatory guidance in serial...
2020-04-2308 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishTelehealth Special Series - IntroAround the beginning of March, life got very busy in the health care world. Producing episodes of Policy in Plainer English was not top of the to-do list. At the same time, responding to the COVID-19 crisis is a pivotal moment in health care and an important time to share information about health care policies. With that in mind, we're back with a streamlined-for-easier-editing (yet still flawless in content) format for Policy in Plainer English PHE Edition. Here, we begin a series on Telehealth.If you want to read ahead and know what's happening with...
2020-04-2207 minPolicy in Plainer EnglishHPSAs (Health Professional Shortage Areas)Luca Fernandez, from the State Office of Rural Health and & Primary Care, which is within the Vermont Department of Health explains HPSAs - a particular term you'll hear come up the moment you dip a toe into the waters of health care workforce development. You can browse HPSAs online here - remember that this podcast is talking primarily about geographic HPSAs, not auto-HPSAs or facility HPSAs, so set your search terms accordingly.Vermont Department of Health (VDH) workforce data, including providers at retirement age by different geographical regions.Shortages and distributions of health...
2020-02-1805 min
Policy in Plainer EnglishBonus: Telemedicine vs. TelehealthIn this mini-episode we pause for a moment to describe the difference between telemedicine and telehealth. Yes, there's a difference. Yes, it's confusing.
2020-02-0904 min
Policy in Plainer EnglishElectronic Health Record (EHR)An interview with Dr. Anje Van Berckelaer of Battenkill Valley Health Center about Electronic Health Records (EHRs). Find show notes and links to all the episodes at plainerenglish.org Background music is by FesliyanStudios.com
2020-01-1209 min
Policy in Plainer EnglishCommunity Health Needs AssessmentsAn interview with Dan Bennett of Gifford Health Care about Community Health Needs Assessments.CHNAs are publicly available, check out Gifford's for an example. This Green Mountain Care Board presentation from June 2019 summarizes common themes from CHNAs submitted with hospital budgets, and the GMCB also publishes an online library of the CHNAs they receive. Background music is by FesliyanStudios.com
2019-11-1310 min
Policy in Plainer EnglishAttributed LivesAn interview with Alicia Cooper from the Department of Vermont Health Access about the one denominator to rule them all, Attributed Lives. Find show notes and more episodes at www.plainerenglish.org.Background music is by FesliyanStudios.com
2019-10-2911 min
Policy in Plainer EnglishWelcome to Payment ReformIn this extended episode, Helen Labun and Georgia Maheras of Bi-State Primary Care Association provide an introduction to the topics covered in our "Payment Reform" series of episodes. Listen to the full series:All Payer ModelACO (Accountable Care Organization)SIM Grants (Mini Episode)Risk CorridorsHCP LAN APM FrameworkGlobal BudgetsAttributed LivesDo you prefer a different format for learning about payment reform? We also have done webinars on this topic, here is a recording of one overview presented for a food policy focused audience on March 5, 2020, and here is a copy of the PowerPoint.
2019-09-1921 min
Policy in Plainer EnglishGlobal BudgetsAn interview with Lawrence Miller of Five Vine Consulting about global budgets and their place in health care payment reform. Find show notes and more episodes at www.plainerenglish.org.Background music is by FesliyanStudios.com
2019-09-1711 min
Policy in Plainer EnglishHCP LAN APM FrameworkAn interview with Ena Backus from the Vermont Agency of Human Services about the HCP LAN APM Framework, which maps a path through payment reform. Find show notes and more episodes at www.plainerenglish.org.Background music is by FesliyanStudios.com
2019-09-1709 min
Policy in Plainer EnglishUDSAn interview with Heather Skeels of Bi-State Primary Care Association about UDS, a data set used to track the performance of certain types of primary care providers (and which offers some insight about the quantity of data floating around in health care). Find 2019 UDS data for Vermont FQHCs at this link. Background music is by FesliyanStudios.com
2019-08-2710 min
Policy in Plainer EnglishRisk CorridorsAn interview with Michael Costa, CEO of Northern Counties Health Care, about adding downside risk to ACO contracts with risk corridors. This is an important step in moving through different phases of health care payment reform, even if it lacks a good acronym. Background music is by FesliyanStudios.com
2019-08-1110 min
Policy in Plainer EnglishThe Health Care Advocate Vs. PaperworkAn interview with Amelia Schlossberg and Marjorie Stinchcombe from the Office of the Health Care Advocate about navigating the paperwork associated with Medicaid and Medicare enrollment. Background music is by FesliyanStudios.com
2019-07-2412 min
Policy in Plainer EnglishTotal Cost of CarePart two of our conversation with Sarah Lindberg from the Green Mountain Care Board, this episode looks at the Total Cost of Care. Check out the VHCURES episode first for this to make more sense. Background music is by FesliyanStudios.com
2019-05-0308 min
Policy in Plainer EnglishVHCURESSarah Lindberg from the Green Mountain Care Board explains the VHCURES database, which sets the stage for our next episode, calculating the Total Cost of Care.Background music is by FesliyanStudios.com
2019-04-3009 min
Policy in Plainer EnglishBonus: SIM GrantsGeorgia Maheras from Bi-State Primary Care Association explains what the SIM Grant is and why Vermont is awesome. Background music by FesliyanStudios.com
2019-04-2004 min
Policy in Plainer EnglishACO (Accountable Care Organization)Kate Simmons from Bi-State Primary Care Association explains ACOs, and in particular shared savings model ACOs. Future episodes will look at other structures these organizations can take. Background music is by FesliyanStudios.com
2019-04-1810 min
Policy in Plainer EnglishGreen Mountain Care BoardAn explanation of the Green Mountain Care Board, with Board member Robin Lunge. With bonus atmospheric effects of an icy rain outside with wind that throws the ice chunks against the office window for portions of the interview, that's April in Vermont. Background music is by FesliyanStudios.com
2019-04-1109 min
Policy in Plainer EnglishAll-Payer ModelIn our pilot episode, Lawrence Miller of Five Vine Consulting explains Vermont's All-Payer Model and why we would like to coordinate payments between Medicaid, Medicare, and Commercial payers as part of health care reform. Background music is by FesliyanStudios.com
2019-04-0709 min