Group Health offers quality, affordable care
Because Group Health offers low out-of-pocket expenses, many employees have assumed the county is trying to encourage employees to enroll in Group Health. They’re right! There are many reasons the county would like to see you enroll in Group Health. Lower cost
On average, Group Health costs you and the county about 15–25 percent less. Group Health is ranked high nationally In a recent issue of a leading consumer magazine, Group Health ranked higher than any other health maintenance organization in the country based on the following criteria: care from doctors, choice of doctors, access to doctors and care, customer service, billing and online services.
Highest marks with Puget Sound Health Alliance
Group Health received "above regional average," the highest mark possible in 11 of 15 quality measures in the 2009 Puget Sound Health Alliance Community Checkup. That’s more top marks than any of the other nine medical groups in the Puget Sound region rated on the same 15 measures. The Puget Sound Health Alliance is an independent nonprofit organization that publishes the Community Checkup report using a rating system based on data from about two million people in our region. Top Docs
More than 50 Group Health doctors have been ranked by their peers as best in their fields in the 2009 Top Doctors issues of Seattle magazine, Seattle Metropolitan magazine, Spokane/Coeur d'Alene Living magazine and 425 Magazine. Group Health doctors were featured in the county’s recent Choose Well lunch-and-learn presentations. To hear what they had to say about primary care, heart health and healthy aging, visit the Health Matters Web site and click on Lunch and Learn Series under Healthy Workplace.
Patients are at the center of care
All Group Health patients get a personal health care team that includes a primary care doctor and other specialized health care experts. All patients can see their medical records and get copies of their lab results, after-visit summaries and a library of health information through secure, confidential online access. Patients can even e-mail their doctors and have follow-up appointments by phone. Group Health is one of the first health care organizations in the nation to develop and use a shared decision-making approach that involves patients in deciding about care when the course of treatment is unclear and several options need to be weighed. Armed with enough information about a “preference sensitive condition” such as breast cancer or prostate cancer, the patient and doctor can decide on a course of treatment that reflects the patient’s preference based on personal values.
Easy access to your health care team
Group Health delivers on its promise to get patients in to see their health care team on the same day as necessary. All e-mail is answered within 24 hours, and a consulting nurse is available by phone 24 hours a day. Also, urgent care centers on Capitol Hill and in Bellevue are open 24 hours a day for those cases demanding immediate attention that would otherwise be low priority in an emergency room.
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