Case Study: WakeMed Key Community Care reduces unnecessary ED visits and lowers total cost of care with Proficient Health's PH Connect

Helping an ACO Address Total Cost of Care (TCoC) by Avoiding Unnecessary ED Visits

WakeMed Key Community Care (WKCC), an ACO/CIN formed by WakeMed and Key IPA that manages more than 210,000 lives through over 1,000 physicians, faced rising total cost of care driven by unnecessary emergency department (ED) evaluations due to limited direct access to on-call specialists. To address this, WKCC implemented a vendor solution from Proficient Health — PH Connect — to improve rapid, direct doctor-to-doctor communication and specialist access.

Proficient Health’s PH Connect enabled secure, name-specific or on-call provider messaging and availability controls, letting clinicians quickly consult specialists without routing patients through the ED. In one pediatric appendicitis case, a pediatrician used PH Connect to reach the on-call surgeon, leading to direct admission and surgery within two hours and discharge hours later — avoiding ED delays and potential overnight admission. The result: improved patient experience and care coordination, faster treatment, and estimated savings of thousands of dollars per avoided ED visit, contributing to WKCC’s reduction in total cost of care.

WakeMed Key Community Care

Emily Temple

Care Advisor