The Care Management Institute: Harvesting Innovation, Maximizing Transfer

With the goal of “making the right thing easier,” the Care Management Institute (CMI) is a central hub where evidence-based guidelines, innovative population care management programs, and rigorous common measurement systems are created for an identified set of priority conditions. Implementation of guidelines and programs is local, allowing regions to maximize impact by leveraging products, tools, services, and new technologies in ways that best suit their operational structures. CMI harvests the experiences of regions to refine and extend programs, cycling the next level of innovation back to clinicians in the field. This model of distributed learning underlies all Kaiser Permanente (KP) population care management activities, maximizing innovation efficiency, supporting “grassroots” program improvements, and empowering clinicians in population care management strategies. CMI also champions efficiency. “In the past, one quality improvement approach was to solve every problem by innovating a new solution. However, innovation has a time cost, and responsible resource stewardship demands that we focus innovation on cutting edge issues that have yet to be addressed,” says Paul Wallace, MD, CMI Executive Director. From its inception, CMI recognized the importance of collaborating with clinicians in all aspects of program development, implementation, and measurement, building structured relationships between CMI at the national level and regional teams of clinicians, implementation specialists, and analysts. The following programs are illustrative of CMI's approach to innovation and transfer.