Dr. Dana Seltzer was recently named ACN’s Quality and Performance Management Committee Chair and has served on the Board of Managers since ACN’s inception in 2013. Dr. Seltzer is an orthopedic surgeon who recently celebrated the first anniversary of owning his own practice, AZ Sports Clinic, in Peoria. He previously helped establish an orthopedic program within Abrazo Medical Group, where he served as director and department chair. He also served as a faculty member at Maricopa Medical Center Orthopedic Residency and its program chair for five years. Following graduation from USC medical school and residency at the University of Miami, Dr. Seltzer completed a sports medicine fellowship in Los Angeles and a shoulder surgery fellowship in San Antonio before moving to Phoenix in 1993.
Why did you decide to join ACN?
The whole concept of ACOs was a new thing, and the idea was you either participate and help direct where things go or stand on the sideline and have others decide for us. I wanted to be involved and see how the changes were going to shape medicine. I didn’t think it should just be primary care providers, that specialists can direct how things change. The best way to do that is to be a part of improving the quality of healthcare, creating cost efficiencies, improving communications, and minimizing repetitive tests that are often a drag on our medical system. These are things that needed to be addressed moving forward, and I’m proud of being a part of this.
How would you like to improve providers’ experience as part of the Quality Committee?
I think everyone is still struggling to get timely information about delivering healthcare, so we’re making decisions from a year or six months ago, without the real time data of how healthcare is occurring. The fastest you can shift is realistically two years before you see an effect. That’s difficult. I do see that changing and I can see us getting to the point that we have good, valid, real time data to assess treatments along with who’s doing well and why.
What benefits have you seen from being part of ACN?
It greatly enhances communication between PCPs and specialists which enhances quality of care. You know who’s in the community and doing what. In any given ACO you have a group of people that are working together to take care of patients and the enhanced communication between those people improves care in different ways: Knowing what’s going on with patients minimizes repetition of tests and delays in treatment from not having information. You can take riskier patients and create a documented pathway that improves care because you can help a patient follow the care plan.
Autonomy for providers is a major pillar of ACN. Why is that important?
It’s something that ACN does a great job recognizing: every practice is different, and much different from a one-person business to a 20-person specialty group. As you bring everything together you recognize the small group practices bring a lot to the table. Individualized care at smaller practices is a different system, so challenges to manage and organize care for these patients is very different. You can turn a boat on a dime but not a cruise ship.
For small, independent providers, what are the benefits of being involved in ACN?
Medicine and its delivery changes so much that if you’re not a part of something like this, especially as a specialist, then you won’t have much of an opportunity to better understand how things change and to be prepared for changes that are always coming. It’s important to be part of the business model of medicine. The environment to move into a community and set up your own practice is rarely feasible. I did it because I was in the community for 30 years, so name recognition and contacts that come along with it help a lot. Being part of a structure can make a huge difference. ACN has done the best at identifying these structures and supporting practices, large and small.
What aspects would you like to see improved for providers affiliated with ACN?
One of the things we’re struggling with is figuring out how we’re going to manage a referral network system so the PCPs know who can communicate best and get referrals to specialists within the system and keep everyone aligned. Those are big-picture items that we need to solve this year. I’ve enjoyed my participation and learned a tremendous amount about PCPs’ functions and expectations, which is extremely valuable. It has greatly enhanced my own understanding of practicing medicine beyond my own practice. ACN has a lot of tools that allow new practitioners to get started on the right foot.
Any advice you’d share for providers new to the network?
There are plenty of ways to participate in committees and things that allow new providers to have a voice. It’s very inclusive. We look for those who want to participate and move the organization forward. The way to make it work for you is to learn because the more you know about it, the more beneficial it can be to you and your patients. Healthcare is very complex. It’s crucial to be involved in an organization with a great network of talented and experienced people knowledgeable about the business of medicine in Arizona.
