The Valley Preferred Physician/Practitioner Compact

Reviewing expectations for both members/participants and leaders

The movement to value-based care has unquestionably stipulated that both leaders and clinicians work together to achieve the best results organization-wide. For Valley Preferred, these combined efforts have been fruitful. We have attained a new level of maturity in terms of infrastructure, resources, and contracting expertise. As we considered the dynamically changing nature of health care and the growing responsibilities of practitioners, we wanted to define what’s expected of both Valley Preferred executive administration and clinicians. We therefore introduced the “Physician/Practitioner Compact” and want to reinforce that it’s a fluid document, open to input from anyone in the organization.

Mark Wendling, MD, Executive Director, and Joseph Habig II, MD, Medical Director, offer this Q&A as a review and reminder for members and participants.

What is the physician/practitioner compact?

The compact is a foundational document that Valley Preferred leaders and others implemented in 2019. It outlines a set of mutual expectations for both members/participants and management. Some of those expectations on the membership side encompass being active and involved. They include using appropriate documentation and coding, attending meetings, participating in continuing education, using EMR, meeting the benchmarks inherent in our value-based contracts, and using available tools such as the Secure Provider Portal to help in managing our population of patients. On the management side, there are items such as sharing our methodology for distributing savings, sharing data in a timely fashion, facilitating education, and designing contracts in a fair and progressive manner to provide the greatest opportunities for members and participants so they can be successful in the world of value-based medical care. It also involves promoting a culture  of wellness for our physician members and APC participants. In the best version of ourselves in both groups, all of us would follow this set of expectations.

Why did Valley Preferred initiate it?

As the world of medicine and contracting grows more complex and regulated, we felt that it would be an advantage to us as a professional organization to have a document representing our core values.
It helps demystify each of our roles in the larger organization. Creating this document was a 2 ½-year process; one that insisted its creators dig deep into our beliefs and distill the important expectations that arose. It gave us the opportunity to have the dialog that truly fleshed out points that otherwise may not have been thought of. As more things rose to the surface, more enhancements were discovered.

What are members/participants expected to do with it?

We ask that potential members/participants review it before joining Valley Preferred. For those that have already joined, know that the compact is a “living” document. Therefore, we invite critical review – at least on an annual basis – and let us know what we should add or change so that it continues to reflect our values and expectations. In the spirit of engagement and transparency, it’s the involvement that we value and want to encourage.

How is consistency with the compact’s values evaluated?

The truth is that those members/participants or leaders who are not working within the framework  of the compact will stand out. It will be obvious who is engaged and who is not. We designed it in such a way, that the document can reflect each individual person’s values and practice, as well as that of the organization. As the principles of the compact are embraced by all involved, a cooperative, successful relationship will be natural.

Read the Valley Preferred Physician/Practitioner Compact here.