A new dementia care and payment model is now available for patients at Eskenazi Health. This new model increases access to high-quality care by directly addressing the needs of unpaid caregivers of those living with Alzheimer's disease and related dementia.

Last year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Innovation Center announced a new dementia care and payment model. This model was developed, in part, by providers at Eskenazi Health who were among the team that helped guide this payment model of care. Now, Eskenazi Health will be one of the first health systems to be able to utilize this new care model.

Malaz Boustani, M.D., MPH, director of care innovation at Eskenazi Health, said that avoiding expensive preventable hospitalizations and keeping patients happily at home and out of nursing homes longer are the main goals of the new care model.

“The magic comes from the care team who works with the patient outside the office, in the home, in the community, with the caregiver,” said Dr. Boustani. “Through decades of research in brain health, we have learned that by reorganizing care, we can obtain better outcomes at lower costs.”

Guiding an Improved Dementia Experience (GUIDE) is the first model established by the Innovation Center that directly addresses the needs of unpaid caregivers of those living with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia. This model aims to provide comprehensive support and resources for caregivers intended to help reduce caregiver strain and to keep patients in their homes, delaying nursing home placement.

Eskenazi Health has been a pioneer in this model of care, and with the changes by CMS, Eskenazi Health will help improve dementia care across the country. The team who helped develop this innovative model includes Dr. Boustani; Christopher Callahan, M.D., chief research and development officer of Eskenazi Health; Sandra Eskenazi Center for Brain Care Innovation at Eskenazi Health; Regenstrief Institute; and IU School of Medicine.

The GUIDE model became available on July 1, 2024, with Eskenazi Health being one of the first to implement it. This model stems from President Joe Biden’s executive order on increasing access to high-quality care and supporting caregivers and the national plan to address Alzheimer’s disease.

This initiative will aim to recruit patients enrolled in Eskenazi Health Senior Care programs and Eskenazi Health patients who are 65 years old plus and not part of Senior Care. These patients may be in primary care, seen in the Sidney & Lois Eskenazi Hospital and discharged, and who present for surgery. Recruitment will also be aimed at unrecognized dementia patients and patients over 65 who left to receive care outside the network.

Caring for those with dementia can cause significant financial strain. Out-of-pocket costs for those living with dementia can be more expensive than many chronic diseases. These costs often fall to the caregiver, who may be unable to work outside the caregiver role. As caregivers are often taking care of a family member, this can leave generational impacts on families battling this disease.

The Eskenazi Health Aging Brain Care program functions under the Sandra Eskenazi Center for Brain Care Innovation. The care team delivers state-of the-art, evidence-based care in home, community and clinical settings. For more information, please contact 317.880.2224.