Blue Cross VT Provider Innovation Award to UVMMC’s Comprehensive Pain Program
Partners Aligned in Transformative Healing (PATH) has been awarded the 2023 Blue Cross Provider Innovation Award.
Berlin, VT – Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont announced today that the Partners Aligned in Transformative Healing program at UVM Medical Center’s Comprehensive Pain Program has been awarded the 2023 Blue Cross Provider Innovation Award.
Partners Aligned in Transformative Healing (PATH) is an intensive outpatient program that supports patients with chronic pain to find the solutions that work for their individual needs. Through a partnership with Blue Cross and Blue Shield Vermont, the program is supported by bundled payments that allow members to access an array of services to address chronic pain for a fixed price to the hospital and limited personal expense for the patient.
“This program is a case study for health care reform. It takes an innovative approach to patient care and well-being, while lowering a reliance on emergency departments and reducing health care costs,” said Dr. Tom Weigel, Chief Medical Officer at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont.
Trained as a clinical psychiatrist, Dr. Weigel has seen firsthand the tragic reverberations that can stem from an over-reliance on pain medication. The PATH program supports patients to find alternative therapies that address their individual circumstance of chronic pain. The services offer patients the opportunity to try out different therapies so they can see what works for them and create new, positive habits. Many of the offerings, like yoga, reiki and acupuncture are not traditionally covered by standard health insurance.
The integrated care team includes an array of providers that support various approaches to wellness. Psychiatrists, psychologists and social workers help the patient identify strategies to build awareness of and reroute potential triggers, and to think wholistically about their medications and their alternatives. Physical therapists, occupational therapists, massage therapists and movement specialists train the patient to move their body mindfully and adjust their intention. Acupuncturists and Reiki practitioners consider how to direct the body’s energy in different ways, while clinical dieticians and chef educators teach participants to plan and prepare healthy foods. This broad array of providers works together in a program that is designed around patient wellness.
“Chronic pain is a highly prevalent and challenging condition, and affects many of our family members, friends and neighbors. While the traditional medical approach has been to treat chronic pain as an ongoing symptom, those affected experience impacts in virtually every arena of their life,” said Dr. Jon Porter, Medical Director of the Comprehensive Pain Program. “The goal of our program is to understand and address the entirety of an individual’s experience with their pain, support them in developing strategies to move forward in the experience, and provide access to therapies that can be highly effective but to which they have previously not had access.”
The Blue Cross Provider Innovation Award was designed to herald providers who are pushing outside the bounds of the status quo in health care. The first Blue Cross Provider Innovation Award went to Evergreen Family Health for their partnership in Vermont Blue Integrated Care, which provides value-based payments for positive outcomes in four key areas of patient health.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont is the state’s only local, not-for-profit health plan. For over 30 years, the organization has been enhancing the health and well-being of the Vermonters by offering innovative plans to individuals, older Vermonters, and businesses. Employees are dedicated to developing new ways to support high-quality care and programs and events that promote wellness. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.
