Project ECHO Sunflower Health Plan

Collaborative Learning Opportunity with FREE Continuing Education:

About Project ECHO

Project ECHO® (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes) is a self-paced lifelong learning and guided practice model that revolutionizes medical education and exponentially increases workforce capacity to provide best-practice specialty care and reduce health disparities.

Project ECHO creates a bridge to allow collaboration and knowledge sharing. The heart of the ECHO model™ is its hub-and-spoke knowledge-sharing networks, led by expert teams who use multi-point videoconferencing, such as Zoom, to conduct virtual clinics with community providers. In this way, primary care doctors, nurses, and other clinicians learn to provide excellent specialty care to patients in their own communities.

The ECHO model is not traditional “telemedicine” where the specialist assumes care of the patient, but is instead tele-mentoring, a guided practice model where the participating clinician retains responsibility for managing the patient.

Project ECHO is not just a learning and mentoring network; it is also a professional community. Participants are encouraged to ask questions, provide input and guidance to one another, and engage actively in discussions, both during and after a session.

For more information please visit the ECHO Institute at the University of New Mexico's Health Science Center.

Four principles comprise the Project ECHO model. The combination of these principles results in a unique and successful approach for improving clinician satisfaction, enhancing clinician knowledge and self-efficacy, and improving patient satisfaction and outcomes:

  1. Amplification: Use technology to leverage the expertise of a multidisciplinary team.
  2. Best Practices: Share best practices to reduce disparities and standardize care.
  3. Case-Based Learning: Leverage case-based learning and guided practice to master complex cases.
  4. Database: Apply web-based tools to monitor outcomes.

What is a hub?

A regional center where a team of subject matter experts for an ECHO program is located, replicates the ECHO Model™ and runs their own ECHO program. Sunflower Health Plan is a Project ECHO hub.

What is a Case Study?

Project ECHO is a case-based learning option for care providers. A case is an overview of an individual’s medical history and overall health.

How much does it cost to participate?

Participation is free. You generally only need to have standard internet connections and a computer.

Is continuing education available?

Case by case basis depending on the program. This information will be listed for each ECHO series.

How is patient or member information protected?

All the patient/member information presented in a session are de-identified and reviewed before the session. A HIPAA announcement is given prior to the start of each session to remind both specialists and clinicians about the importance of preserving patient confidentiality.

Who should participate?

Individual clinicians of all levels are welcome and highly encouraged to participate in sessions, including physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, registered nurses, psychiatrists, social workers, community health workers and pharmacists. Team participation is encouraged, as team-based care is the ideal model for enabling higher-level care delivery and task shifting.

Project Echo Team, Names below

Sunflower Health Plan Project ECHO Team

Mohamed Radhi, MD; Nan Perrin, PhD, BCBA-D, LBA; Kristine Meier

  • Chair - Dr. Nan Perrin, PhD, BCBA-D, LBA
  • Co-Chair - Dr. Mohamed Radhi, MD
  • Facilitator - Kristine Meier, M.S. Ed
  • Project Support - Jenny Davis

Contact: projectECHO@sunflowerhealthplan.com

Sunflower Project ECHO

Accreditation

The Office of Continuing Education, School of Medicine, University of Missouri is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians. The Office of Continuing Education, School of Medicine, University of Missouri designates this live educational activity for a maximum of 1 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should only claim the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

University of Missouri Sinclair School of Nursing is approved as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the Midwest Multistate Division, an accredited approver by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation. 1.0 contact hour will be awarded to all individuals who successfully complete this activity.

Successful Completion

Successful completion of this activity — includes participating in the educational offering, the evaluation process and completing the verification of attendance — enables the learner to satisfy the requirements for continuing education.

Sunflower Project ECHO: Enhancing Independence for Individuals with Disabilities

We invite you to attend this series, which will focus on:

  • Broadening the Understanding of the Complexity of Supporting People with Disabilities
  • Increasing the Awareness of Services Available to People with Disabilities
  • Understanding How to Access Supports within the State

Please plan to attend our Project ECHO sessions Thursdays in November (November 2, 9, 16 and 30) from 12:00-1:00 PM CT via Zoom video conferencing.

Topics include:

  • November 2 – Person Centered Thinking – Cheryl Laaker, Community Engagement Manager, Sunflower Health Plan
  • November 9 – Technology Assistance – Brian Hart, CEO, Smart Living Systems by LADD
  • November 16 – Domestic Violence – Jami Clark, Disabilities Project Coordinator, & Shirley Fessler, Kansas Coalition Against Sexual & Domestic Violence
  • November 30 – Self Direction – Jill Dudley, Executive Director, Independence Inc., & Deone Wilson, Executive Director, Resource Center for Independent Living, Inc.

Dates to vary by speaker availability.

November 2 – Person Centered Thinking (PDF) – Cheryl Laaker, Community Engagement Manager, Sunflower Health Plan

Case Study (PDF)

November 9 – Technology Assistance (PDF) – Brian Hart, CEO, Smart Living Systems by LADD

Case Study (PDF)

November 16 – Domestic Violence (PDF) – Jami Clark, Disabilities Project Coordinator, & Shirley Fessler, Kansas Coalition Against Sexual & Domestic Violence

November 30 – Self Direction (PDF) – Jill Dudley, Executive Director, Independence Inc., & Deone Wilson, Executive Director, Resource Center for Independent Living, Inc.

Register for the Sunflower Project ECHO: Enhancing Independence for Individuals with Disabilities

Note: After registering you will be given the opportunity to save the series to your calendar of choice. You will also receive an invite via email.

Please do not forward your invite, as it is specific to each person.

To receive clinician continuing education credit from the University of Missouri or certificate of completion from Sunflower Health Plan, each participant must register individually.

Previous Series

Presentations and recommendations for previous Project ECHO sessions can be found on the Project ECHO archive page.