The Johns Hopkins ACG® System is more than just a risk-adjustment model. It is a comprehensive family of measurement tools designed to help explain and predict how healthcare resources are delivered and consumed. The ACG System identifies persons who are likely to become high resources users or who will be hospitalized and provides important clinical context to aid in managing their care. Because no two healthcare systems are exactly alike, the components of the ACG System are designed to allow users to customize the model for their organization's needs. The ACG System provides a varied toolkit for developing the most appropriate solution for each application. Common applications of ACGs include:
- Care Management (including case management, disease management and high risk case identification.)
- Provider Profiling (Performance Assessment)
- Financial Analysis
- Population Profiling
The ACG System provides a framework for evaluating population health. Patient risk in the form of categories and relative risk scores can be applied both concurrently and prospectively. The ACG System’s suite of tools has been used to support basic and complex applications in finance, administration, care delivery, and evaluative research for over a decade. These applications have been both real-time (concurrent) and forward-looking (prospective.) They may involve simple spreadsheet calculations or complex multi-variable statistical models. No other risk adjustment methodology has been used for so many purposes in so many places, while at the same time showing such high levels of quantitative and qualitative success. The flexibility offered by the ACG System demonstrates that we recognize that one size does not fit all.
