In early March 2019, Discover Health Functional Medicine Center (DHFMC) submitted what is called an Exemplary Practice Performance Story to the Northern New England (NNE) Practice Transformation Network (PTN), a collaborative program that “supports healthier people, better patient care, smarter spending, and increased joy for provider teams in their work” across Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont.
The Exemplary Practice Performance Story is an ‘elevator speech’ of sorts that showcases the excellent care that DHFMC has been providing to patients. The narrative specifically highlights the success of patients participating in D.E.N.T., a four to six-month intensive and supportive program offered by Discover Health Functional Medicine Center.
D.E.N.T. patients focus on diet, detox, exercise, nutrition, and treatment strategies to mitigate chronic dis-ease and conditions that may include hypertension, obesity, allergies, stress, food intolerance, etc. Learning, support, and group interchange build individual capacity for making positive health choices and change.
The providers and staff at DHFMC focus on the overall health status of the patients they care for. Their primary focus relative to blood pressure control is to assure feedback to the primary care provider, particularly in the communication of abnormal readings and/or follow-up as requested in a referral.
While blood pressure medication management is left to the primary care providers, the strategies that DHFMC offers patients for optimizing diet, exercise, hormone and adrenal function, detoxification, and brain function contribute to controlling blood pressure. Compared to the average performance rates for the NNE-PTN, DHFMC achieved significantly higher rates of success in controlling high blood pressure in mid-2017 and early-2018.
DHFMC brings value to patients through a personalized approach, multiple modalities for education, alternative and adjunctive therapies, active and ongoing community outreach, and the use of a website and patient portal to make information accessible.
The healthcare provided by the staff at DHFMC has been shown to improve the health of patients, so much so that thousands of dollars are saved on costly measures associated with controlling high blood pressure and imaging.
| Cost Savings Source | Total Attributed Patients Included in Cost Savings Contribution | Patients Improved of Utilization Reduced | Average Charge Per Episode | Total Savings |
| Controlling High Blood Pressure (NQF 0018) | 51 | 13 | $420 | $5,460 |
| Use of Imaging Studies (NQF 0052) | 227.00% | 47 | $883 | $41,501 |
| Total Savings from all Cost Savings Sources: | $46,961 |
The goal for DHFMC has always been to empower patients to take control of their health and improve their quality of life. Dr. Trish Murray, DHFMC’s founder and provider of care, is passionate and committed to share the tools for health and a healthy lifestyle with her patients through alternative service offerings, memberships and programs targeting groups with common health goals, educational offerings in varying mediums, and community outreach and member events.
For more information about the D.E.N.T.TM program please visit the Discover Health Functional Medicine Center website discoverhealthfmc.com/d-e-n-t-overview or purchase a copy of Dr. Murray’s new book, Make a D.E.N.T.TM in Chronic Disease, Your Guide to Living Pain Free Through Functional Medicine available on Amazon members.discoverhealthfmc.com/