Cambridge Health Alliance and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center have signed an agreement to form a clinical and academic affiliation to improve care provided by both institutions.
Implementation of the affiliation is pending review by the state’s Health Policy Commission. Starting Jan. 1, 2014, CHA and its physicians will join the Beth Israel Deaconess Care Organization, an accountable care organization formed by BIDMC and Harvard Medical Faculty Physicians at BIDMC earlier this year.
BIDCO will also become the primary physician-contracting organization for CHA, officials said. About 20 percent of CHA’s primary care physicians will continue to be part of the Mount Auburn Cambridge Independent Practice Association.
CHA patients will benefit from “enhanced coordination,” including shared electronic medical records, when they need more complex care from BIDMC specialists, while BIDMC patients will benefit from access to CHA’s community hospital services, officials said.
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CHA will continue to serve as a surgical rotation site for BIDMC surgery residents, while CHA residents will continue to perform cardiology and family medicine rotations at BIDMC. BIDMC residents in emergency medicine will also have training rotations at CHA.
Cambridge Health Alliance operates three hospital campuses and a network of primary and specialty care practices in Cambridge, Somerville and Boston’s northern suburbs.
Date: May 2, 2013