As the healthcare industry continues to move from volume- to value-based systems of care, provider pay is following suit. However, aligning clinical compensation models with performance remains an ongoing challenge.
According to results from a Sullivan, Cotter and Associates' Provider Performance Incentive Survey, 33 percent of multi-specialty medical groups and health systems that are ahead of the curve in incorporating quality measures into their provider incentive plans have more than 10 percent of compensation associated with value- and quality-based performance measures.
In the 2014 survey, Sullivan, Cotter and Associates collected information from a hand-selected group of more than 30 large multi-specialty groups and health systems. These organizations reported on more than 20 specialties and provided details on more than 350 performance measures.
Here are four findings from the survey.
1. Sixty-eight percent of the organizations surveyed reported they have quality incentives tied to compensation for all specialties, whereas 32 percent indicated that quality measures are currently only associated with select specialties.
2. Another 58 percent of respondents said they have incorporated quality metrics into their advanced practice clinician incentive plans as well.
3. Primary care specialties continue to see a growing proportion of their total cash compensation attributed to quality and value measures, which averaged 6 percent in 2014. These compensation arrangements are evenly divided between "at-risk" pay, bonus pay or a combination of the two.
4. The primary care specialties with the greatest prevalence of quality measures incorporated into their compensation systems include internal medicine and family medicine, at 94 percent and 90 percent, respectively. The most commonly reported measures within these two specialties are related to the patient experience and patient access. Other top measures reported include preventative/chronic health issues such as diabetes, heart disease and mental health, as well as tobacco cessation counseling and readmission rates.