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Medica Launches Health and Wellness Coaching

Posted on: Thursday, 2 October 2008, 12:06 CDT

Medica has launched a health and wellness coaching program that provides its members with the personal support they need to set health improvement goals and achieve them. Any Medica member with applicable benefits may participate in the program.

Program participants work with a personal health and wellness coach who assists members in determining their overall health status, identifying concerns on which the member would like to focus and establishing goals related to their health and well-being. Some examples of those conditions include high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, depression, weight management, exercise and stress.

Once a member decides to participate in health and wellness coaching, a health and wellness coach is assigned. A member has the same coach throughout the program, which typically lasts about six months or until significant progress is made toward meeting a member's health goals.

The program works through regular contact between participants and health and wellness coaches. During the sessions, coaches check on members' progress toward meeting their goals and offer suggestions geared to each participant's motivation and desire to make changes. The program also is customized and self-directed because each member establishes his or her own goals.

Medica health and wellness coaches have backgrounds in health coaching, nursing, psychology, social work, exercise physiology, dietetics/nutrition or health education. They have demonstrated active listening skills, the ability to develop rapport, empathy, and ability to support a member through motivation, building confidence and applying techniques that encourage changes in behavior. Medica also partnered with the University of Minnesota's Center for Spirituality and Healing to develop an extensive training program for its health and wellness coaches. The University of Minnesota program is acknowledged to have the most extensive health coach training program in the country.

"Medica's health and wellness coaching program is the newest phase of our programs designed to help members achieve their health goals," said Dr. Charles Fazio, Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice President of Health Management Administration. "It is focused on each member's motivation to make health behavior changes, which we believe is foundational to better health in the long run."

Although any Medica member with appropriate benefits may participate in the program, some Medica members who have high health risks have been invited to participate. Those members are identified by using medical, behavioral and pharmacy claims data in conjunction with sophisticated predictive modeling tools. Health coaching also coordinates with Medica's care management, wellness and behavioral health programs for an integrated health management approach. To further support identification of at-risk members, Medica will also use other types of data such as provider referrals, self referrals and health risk assessments. Individuals considered to be at risk have chronic diseases and multiple health conditions, and consume a disproportionate amount of healthcare resources.

About Medica

Medica is a health insurance company headquartered in Minneapolis and active in the Upper Midwest. With nearly 1.4 million members, the non-profit company provides health care coverage in the employer, individual, Medicaid, Medicare and Medicare Part D markets in Minnesota and a growing number of counties in North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin. Medica also offers national network coverage to employers who also have employees outside the Medica regional network.

Medica has the highest accreditation status, Excellent, from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA(R)) for its Minnesota Medicaid HMO plans and commercial health plans in Minnesota and North Dakota. Medica's vision is to become the community's health plan of choice, trusted for its integrity, respected for its service, and admired for its commitment to innovation and efficiency.

Source: Business Wire

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