The Wilmington, N.C.-based New Hanover Regional Medical Center (NHRMC) has formed Physician Quality Partners, a clinically integrated network (CIN)/accountable care organization (ACO) aimed to provide physicians access to the collaborative tools they will need to succeed in the new health care environment.

Through the partnership, physicians will be able to drive quality improvements for their patients, access the data they need to measure success, coordinate care with other providers, negotiate contracts and control costs, according to officials from NHRMC, the 628-bed teaching hospital.

An ACO/CIN is a collaborative effort among physicians, usually supported by a healthcare system, to actively develop clinical initiatives that will improve the quality of healthcare services and control costs. Clinically integrated programs align the objectives for providers and payers as they focus on defined quality goals and cost containment measures.

Though participating physicians will benefit from the collaboration within the group, they will be able to maintain their autonomy and private practice.

As part of Physician Quality Partners, physicians will establish the quality benchmarks and goals for the group. “The partnership allows physicians to be involved in deciding what defines quality care for our patients,” Birgit Arb, M.D., Cape Fear Cancer Specialists, and one of the six Wilmington physicians who were instrumental in establishing the partnership, said in a statement. “Through it we can also measure our success and align incentives for meeting quality goals.”