Memphis, TN
Healthy Memphis Common Table (HMCT), leader of the Aligning Forces for Quality initiative in Memphis, has taken on the challenge of engaging small health care practices to improve primary care with Project Better Care. Project Better Care is a partnership with the Healthy Memphis Common Table, The Memphis Medical Society, and Bluff City Medical Society to engage primary care providers and their patients to better manage Type 2 diabetes.
Partnerships with the two area medical societies were essential with initiating Project Better Care. The medical societies were integral with...
The term “food desert” has been mentioned widely. Many have questioned whether living in a food desert contributes to obesity because of the preponderance of fast foods and convenience stores and the dearth of healthy options, including grocery stores selling fresh fruits and vegetables.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s 16 Aligning Forces for Quality (AF4Q) communities are showing that bringing together the people who give care, get care and pay for care improves quality.
After six years, AF4Q communities have built transformative partnerships, often where none existed before:
- Data on quality, cost and patient experience measures are being collected and publicly reported.
- Practice coaches are deployed in hundreds of primary care practices.
- Hospitals are improving care from the emergency department (ED) to...
The Aligning Forces for Quality (AF4Q) initiative in Memphis is led by Healthy Memphis Common Table (HMCT). The organization was established in 2003 as a result of a community-wide forum calling for the creation of an organization to coordinate health improvement activities throughout Memphis. Its mission is to support and encourage people to work together to ultimately make Memphis one of the healthiest cities in America! HMCT brings together key stakeholders such as consumers, health care providers, insurers, employers, government, advocacy groups, schools, universities, civic groups and neighborhoods. More than 200 partner organizations have joined HMCT’s efforts. Its initiatives include reducing obesity, diabetes, reducing disparities in health care, helping consumers understand what quality care is and more. Convincing all Memphis-area residents to live healthier lifestyles is a huge task, but HMCT is up to the challenge. In fact, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has recognized HMCT as a promising national model for a regional health collaborative.
