Echosens and MetaPhy Health Collaborate to Expand Patient-Centered Care for Chronic Liver Conditions: Gastroenterology Specialists Improve Outcomes, Lower Costs & Enhance Practice Performance
Many individuals with gastrointestinal issues are also living with other chronic diseases that can be improved through early detection, monitoring, patient education and engagement.
Echosens, a high-technology company offering the FibroScan family of products, announces its collaboration with MetaPhy Health to support turn-key, comprehensive chronic disease management services to gastroenterology practices for their patients with fatty liver disease. FibroScan, a non-invasive, rapid and painless examination to accurately detect, assess and monitor liver fat and stiffness, is a cornerstone of the Echosens patient-centered care model designed to improve individual health outcomes, lower payer costs by avoiding expensive, invasive interventions and enhance the financial performance of gastroenterology practices.
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Chris Oubre, president and chief operating officer, MetaPhy Health, says, “We’re very excited to join forces with Echosens to improve care coordination and develop and implement a comprehensive care plan for patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), fibrotic non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), Type 2 diabetes, obesity and/or the underlying metabolic syndrome conditions that contribute to the progression or risk of developing advanced liver disease. Many individuals with gastrointestinal issues are also living with other chronic diseases that can be improved through early detection, monitoring, patient education and engagement.”
NAFLD affects approximately 85 million Americans, and its progressive form, NASH with fibrosis, is estimated to affect 16 million. NAFLD and NASH are becoming the leading cause of liver cancer and cirrhosis in the United States and the leading indication for liver transplant.
Dr. Reed Hogan, M.D., GI Associates (GIA) in Flowood, Mississippi, says the practice has successfully integrated its FibroScan capabilities with the MetaPhy CCM programs.
“With the MetaPhy partnership, GIA is able to provide services to patients across the spectrum of NAFLD, leveraging FibroScan to monitor and engage patients,” he says. “Effective lifestyle modification has been shown to cease and often reverse the progression of fibrotic NASH. By engaging patients in this comprehensive care program, we hope to improve patient outcomes and reduce costs, while also enhancing practice performance.”
GIA is not only experiencing fiscal benefits from its NAFLD program, but also providing a valuable service to its community where viable treatment options for NAFLD have traditionally been scarce.
Jon Gingrich, CEO, Echosens North America, says the MetaPhy focus on helping practices manage liver disease provides an ideal opportunity to incorporate FibroScan as a way to effectively impact overall patient outcomes.
“While finding and managing fibrotic NASH is an important component to addressing liver disease, patients with steatosis alone are at a greater risk of cardiovascular mortality and morbidity,” he says. “For these patients, FibroScan has become the centerpiece of the GIA CCM program, which has been shown to reduce costs and improve outcomes in this population. In the GI setting where the volume of NAFLD/metabolic syndrome patients is overwhelming, the profitability of CCM really drives this ancillary.”
About Echosens
Echosens, the developer of FibroScan®, is an innovative high-technology company offering a full range of products and services supporting physicians in their assessment and management of patients with chronic liver diseases. FibroScan is supported by over 2,500 peer-reviewed publications and examinations are covered by Medicare, Medicaid and many insurance plans. For more information, please visit http://www.echosens.us and follow us on Twitter (@echosensNA).
About MetaPhy Health
MetaPhy Health partners with gastroenterology practices to provide comprehensive chronic disease management services to their patient populations. Through this partnership, physicians can provide patients with a safe, easy, and cost-effective way to identify, measure, and manage the severity of their chronic GI-related conditions. MetaPhy’s disease management services are delivered via a telehealth platform comprised of a Virtual Care Team, and these comprehensive services are designed to encourage a healthier lifestyle for long-term results. For more information, please visit www.metaphyhealth.com.
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