About Us
Leadership
COHE Community with Providence offices are located throughout Washington State and are a part of Providence St. Luke's Rehabilitation Medical Center.* Those who serve as stewards of the COHE Program include:
- Nancy Webster, MBA, CTRS; Hospital Administrator and Chief Operating Officer
- Gregory T. Carter, MD, MS; Chief Medical Officer
- Tom Martin, Director of Occupational Health & COHE Community with Providence
- Amy Anderson: Program Manager and Outreach Coordinator of COHE Community with Providence
* The staff of COHE Community with Providence are employees of Providence St. Luke's Rehabilitation Medical Center.
What is COHE?
The Center of Occupational Health & Education (COHE) Community with Providence is a public-private partnership between the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) and Providence St. Luke's Rehabilitation Medical Center in Spokane, WA. COHE is a joint venture unlike any in the nation and the results are impressive, far exceeding expectations for patient outcomes – including cost savings and satisfaction by providers, patients and employers.
How COHE works
Community health care providers participating in COHE receive education on occupational health best practices and incentive pay for following best practices. Health services coordinators (HSCs) work directly with the injured worker, employer, health care provider, L&I and others to coordinate the care and return-to-work activities for injured workers.
Program goals
- Reduce disability and help injured workers return to work when medically appropriate
- Early identification of high-risk claims and improved coordination of care
- Foster adoption of occupational health best practices among providers, particularly with conditions contributing to higher rates of time loss compensation
- Increase employer, worker and provider satisfaction with the workers’ compensation system
- Sustain and enhance quality outcomes for injured workers
Outcomes
- Injured workers are more likely to receive benefits more quickly and experience a lower incidence of disability
- Employers experience less lost time from valuable workers and receive support in return-to-work activities
- Medical providers receive incentive pay and valuable occupational health education
History
- 2003 - The "Spokane COHE" was established, serving Spokane, Grant and Stevens counties
- 2005 - With the success of the pilot and the expansion into 13 additional counties, Spokane COHE changed its name to Eastern Washington COHE
- 2011 - State Legislature approved SSB 5801 calling for a state wide expansion of the COHE program by the end of 2015
- 2013 - Eastern Washington COHE expanded its service area to 19 counties including Benton, Franklin and Kittitas counties
- 2014 - Eastern Washington COHE became COHE Community of Eastern Washington and has expanded to include the Surgical Best Practices Pilot
- 2019 - COHE Community of Eastern Washington expanded its service area to 20 counties to include Klickitat County
- 2022 – COHE Community of Eastern Washington became COHE Community with Providence
- 2023 – COHE Community with Providence secured a new contract with Labor and Industries, which allows expansion of services to be the COHE of choice for all Providence providers in Washington and the largest COHE in the state.
COHE Community with Providence Service Area
COHE Community with Providence enrolls all Providence providers as well as providers in central and eastern Washington.
To learn more about the COHE program, visit the L&I website.