BluePreferred a pioneer in accreditation of PPOs

BluePreferred PPO is the first preferred provider organization in the state, and only the second in the nation, to receive URAC National Network Accreditation.

URAC, as the organization is known, is the preeminent accrediting body for utilization management organizations, performing 400 accreditation reviews over the last five years. The National Network Accreditation Standards were launched in April 1996 after more than a year of debate by a broad-based task force of managed care analysts.

Ten network plans are now under review, with applications for review of 1997 expected to rise sharply. "More and more companies are asking that their health plan be accredited," said Dr. Rodney Heuy, corporate medical director for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Oklahoma, operator of BluePreferred PPO. "Knowing that a health plan measures up to exacting standards makes choosing a plan that much easier. "URAC accreditation sets us apart in the marketplace and validates our commitment to providing quality health care benefits. " URAC recognized BluePreferred for meeting standards in network management, quality, health care provider credentialing, member participation and protection, and utilization management. Local hospitals participating in the network include: Integris's Baptist Medical Center and Southwest Medical Center, Deaconess Hospital, Columbia's Edmond Regional Medical Center and Presbyterian Hospital, and Midwest City Regional Hospital. Business St. Anthony Hospital is expanding its Joyful Beginnings Maternal/Child Department. The project will streamline maternity admissions, add four treatment/assessment rooms and provide an education area for expectant mothers. Most expecting mothers now enter the hospital through the emergency department. Moving the entrance and admissions to one centrally located area will better accommodate mothers and free up the emergency department personnel. Integris Mental Health Inc. will open a clinic Monday inside the Bristow Memorial Hospital. A therapist will be available each Monday to counsel families or individuals. Special attention to children's issues will be provided by Dr. Max Price. He will be available the third Wednesday of each month for assessment and consultation for children who have psychological, behavior or learning problems. Vencor Hospital -- Oklahoma City has been accredited with commendation by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. The 1407 N. Robinson acute care hospital scored a perfect 100 in its survey, placing Vencor in the top 1 percent of hospitals in the nation. Renaissance Women's Center of Edmond has received accreditation in a preliminary report from the Joint Commission. Ed Gray, Renaissance's CEO, expects the official report to be issued within the next couple of months. Midwest City Regional Medical Center's Home Health Services also has received accreditation from the Joint Commission. The Medicare/Medicaid certified service has more than 100 staff members caring for nearly 900 patients. Finally, way up there in Tulsa, the Saint Simeon's Episcopal Home has gained accreditation from the panel, chalking up a 100 on the survey. Prudential HealthCare has added several metro clients for its managed care services over the last six months. Altec Lansing has chosen Prudential's health maintenance organization, point-of- service plan, dental maintenance organization and group life coverage for its 440 workers. Professional Home Care has bought POS and DMO coverage for its 620 employees. And Frankfort, Short and Bruza is offering Prudential's HMO, POS, PPO, DMO and life and disability coverage for its 200 workers. Metro Tech's surgical technology program has received initial accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs. The four-year accreditation recognizes the program's compliance with national standards established by the American College of Surgeons, the American Hospital Association and the Association of Surgical Technologists. The 10-month Metro Tech program prepares students to deliver direct patient care before, during and after surgery. The RAIN Oklahoma City Executive Office and Western Region Office is moving to the fifth floor of 1200 N. Walker Ave. RAIN, which stands for the Regional AIDS Interfaith Network, is an organization whose volunteers provide practical care and emotional support for people living with HIV/AIDS. The suite was made available to RAIN at no cost by David Port and Thom Collins. Underwriters and sponsors are sought for Red Tie Night `97, a benefit for HIV/AIDS projects to be held Saturday, March 8, at the Marriott Hotel. Fourteen projects benefitted from the 1996 black-tie dinner sponsored by the Oklahoma AIDS Care Fund, with more than $240,000 raised. The fund, chaired by Barbara and Jackie Cooper, has already distributed $229,590 of the donations. Gatherings Former U. S. Surgeon General M. Joycelyn Elders will address "AIDS: What the Black Church Must Do" from noon-2 p.m. Saturday at Mt. Carmel Baptist Church, 3721 Staton Dr. The doctor's lecture coincides with a training event to prepare individuals to be volunteers with RAIN Oklahoma. The training session runs from 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Diagnosis, intervention and restoration are the topics of The Integris Institute's second class. The Dec. 12 outing will begin at Integris Baptist Medical Center, then hit the road for tours of the Jim Thorpe Rehabilitation Hospital, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation and Columbia Presbyterian Hospital's Gamma Knife Surgery Center. "Breaking through Dementia" is the subject for a presentation by Naomi Feil at the Third Age Life Center of Integris Baptist Medical Center. The two-day workshop will run from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Jan. 16-17 in Baptists' Raymond A. Young Conference Center. The conference will offer CEUs from the Council of Continuing Medical Education, the Oklahoma State Board of Licensed Social Workers and the State Health Department. Deadline to register for the free conference is Dec. 13. Feil, executive director of the Validation Training Institute, is the author of Validation: The Feil Method and the Validation Breakthrough. She also has penned 10 film scripts. People Dr. Donald C. Brown has joined the staff of Columbia Presbyterian Hospital. The graduate of the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center began his practice in Midwest City. He specializes in obstetrics and gynecology, with experience in high risk obstetrics, operative hysteroscopy, laparoscopy and adolescent pregnancy. Midwest Regional Medical Center has named Jill A. Fraim director of marketing and public relations. The 14-year veteran of health care marketing has worked at Mercy Health Center and the Oklahoma City Clinic. Fraim also has assisted Oklahoma Hospital Association officials review and revise the Guide to Hospital-News Media Relations. She serves as vice president of membership for the International Association of Business Communicators and is a member of the state hospital association's Hospital Marketing and Public Relations Society. Kristal Mann will now be responsible for processing client medical bills as the medical fee scheduler for Commonwealth Management Inc. Mann joined the firm's parent company, PCA Solutions Inc., in December 1995. Commonwealth Management is one of the largest workers compensation third-party administrators in the Midwest and Southeast. Community Oklahoma's Arthritis Foundation chapter drew accolades at the national organization's national meeting and annual assembly, held earlier this month in Dallas. The chapter was praised for its financial development, public education and support of the voluntary research fund. If you're looking for something different to contribute to this holiday season, here's a suggestion. The Caring Program for Children has met the health care benefit needs of nearly 700 kids in the Sooner State since its inception just over a year ago. To help the program extend health care insurance to even more of the state's estimated 45,000 uninsured children, individuals or corporations may call the Tulsa organization at 1-800- 94-BLUES. It costs only $198 to insure one child for a year, with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Oklahoma matching each contribution and donating all administrative services. Kirby Lee Davis welcomes your comments and contributions. You may reach him by phone at (405) 278-2843, by fax at 278-2890, or by e- mail, dpage

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