NordiCare NOW: Effects on Communication and Efficiency—Nurses Perspectives on its Impact from Four Pediatric Endocrinology Sites

Abstract

As insurers tighten requirements to prove medical necessity and increasingly mandate product switching, health care providers carry the burden of assuring that patients receive prescribed care. This requires providers to support and track patients through an arduous and ongoing process to obtain and maintain access to Norditropin [somatropin (rDNA origin)]. The complexity is compounded by increasing patient loads and frequently shifting formularies. Convenient and effective support for this process is valued, especially when it can be personalized to fit the needs of individual health care providers. Norditropin requires a long-term commitment by the patient, caregiver(s), and health care providers, beginning with prior authorization and extending throughout the treatment process. This process involves many challenges, from the initial authorization of the medication, to providing injection training, to the need for reauthorizations when approvals have expired. For patients prescribed Norditropin, NordiCare is a comprehensive support program available to health care providers, patients, and caregivers that address these challenges. Continuous and clear communication is needed between NordiCare and health care providers to assure that relevant information is shared. To address this need, in June 2008, the NordiCare NOW Web site was launched. NordiCare NOW is a secure yet convenient Web site for health care providers that assist them to stay up-to-date on case status through an online/Web-based communication avenue with NordiCare. It is specifically designed to protect personal health information while providing real-time 24/7, on-demand access to a log of all communications related to the patient and to the patients' reimbursement status. Many features are available to help health care providers save time and stay in control of their patients' cases in a personalized manner, from the initial prior authorization throughout the entire duration of the patient's treatment. This poster will review this new service, providing an overview of the Web site. Specific features of the Web site will be presented including how these features have facilitated the overall process at four pediatric endocrinology sites, in both academic and private practice settings.