Before joining NYMC full time, Dr. Tahara was an independent consultant working to improve the quality, efficiency and effectiveness of service delivery systems. Projects include improving billing and collections for a nursing home system, including correcting and resubmitting denied Medicare and Medicaid claims, reducing bad debt expense. Working with performance improvement teams at a home healthcare agency, she streamlined the reporting and analysis of quality indicators and implemented new methods to improve patient safety. At a large auto insurance company, she worked with a team to streamline the claims process, utilizing scanned/imaged documents, reducing paper flow and also updating client data records. Dr. Tahara has also worked with area hospitals to develop business plans to expand their programs and the corresponding metrics to measure the performance. This resulted in the approval of a residency program with NYMC and creation of new specialty programs at the hospitals. Currently, Dr. Tahara works with organizations on performance improvement, integrative care, and food insecurity. She helps them leverage existing resources to innovate and engage; create strategic partnerships with local community leaders; and invest community members in the long-term health of their neighborhoods.
