News
Discern Health Co-Authors JITC Article on Quality Measures for Cancer Immunotherapy
February 2020
In conjunction with the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC), Discern Health Partner Tom Valuck and Director David Blaisdell co-authored the new Journal of ImmunoTherapy of Cancer (JITC) article, “Defining Current Gaps in Quality Measures for Cancer Immunotherapy: Consensus Report from the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC) 2019 Quality Summit.” The article identifies four…
Discern Health Announces Staff Promotions
January 2020
Discern Health is excited to announce the promotion of three Discern Project Analysts—Tess Donckels, Palak Patel, and Rachael Peroutky—to Project Managers. They have each demonstrated the ability to manage complex projects and develop creative approaches and solutions that help our clients succeed in the value-based care environment. As a Project Manager, Tess Donckels contributes to…
Patient Perspectives on Value-Based Care from the NCCN Patient Advocacy Summit
January 2020
One of the biggest barriers to patient-centered care is the gap between patient views of value-based care and physician and health system views. In December, Discern Health attended the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) Patient Advocacy Summit: Delivering Value for Patients Across the Oncology Ecosystem in Washington, DC. The summit highlighted the patient perspective on…
Discern Health Welcomes Norris Turner as a Senior Advisor
January 2020
Discern Health welcomes Norris Turner, PharmD, PhD, as a Senior Advisor. Norris leads Turner Healthcare Quality Consulting, LLC, in advancing projects with biopharmaceutical clients to optimize the value they deliver to patients, payers, and providers. In his affiliation with Discern, Norris will use his nearly 20 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry and deep knowledge…
Quality Outlook Blog: We Need Better Quality Measures for Oncology Care First
January 2020
In the latest installment of Discern Health’s Quality Outlook blog series in the Journal of Clinical Pathways, Partner Tom Valuck and Directors Manasi Tirodkar and David Blaisdell discuss the new oncology value-based care model, Oncology Care First (OCF), and emphasize the critical opportunity to advance clinical quality measurement for oncology care by addressing important gaps…
Discern Health Welcomes David Wierz as a Senior Advisor
December 2019
Discern Health welcomes David Wierz as a Senior Advisor. David leads projects for life sciences clients to apply analytics to implement strategies that define value and promote access. In his affiliation with Discern, David will use his payment and care delivery policy knowledge to help life sciences companies develop product value strategies that enhance clinical,…
Quality Outlook Blog: Aligning Quality Measurement with Oncology Innovation
December 2019
In the latest installment of Discern Health’s Quality Outlook blog series in the Journal of Clinical Pathways (JCP), Partner Tom Valuck and Directors David Blaisdell and Theresa Schmidt highlight the challenge of keeping quality measures up to date as new evidence and guidelines are rapidly updated and breakthrough treatments transform clinical practice. “Catch Me If…
Alexis Malfesi Promoted to Senior Project Manager
December 2019
We are excited to announce that Alexis Malfesi has been promoted to Senior Project Manager. Alexis conducts research and develops business strategies to position clients for success in value-based environments and assesses the quality and performance measure landscape to identify gaps and areas for growth. Her recent work at Discern includes developing policy briefs assessing the…
Theresa Schmidt Presents Findings on Patient-Reported Measures for Oncology
November 2019
During the 2019 LAN Summit in Washington, DC, Discern Health Director Theresa Schmidt joined colleagues from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Duke University Medical Center, Pacific Business Group on Health, and Project Patient Care for the panel “Quality Measurement: Getting to Better Measurement of Patient Engagement and Experience.” The panel addressed efforts underway…
Donna Dugan Presents Strategies to Improve Care for Rural Communities at Risk for Opioid Addiction
November 2019
Discern Health Vice President Donna Dugan joined colleagues from the Rural Carrier Benefit Plan and TrestleTree at the 2019 Maryland Rural Health Conference for the panel “Improving Care for Rural Communities At-Risk for Opioid Abuse and Addiction.” The panelists led an informative discussion on the use of care coordination and patient engagement to improve care…
