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Across the divide: "Primary care departments working together to redesign care to achieve the Triple Aim".

ABSTRACT: Primary care is considered the foundation of an effective health care system. However, primary care departments at academic health centers have numerous challenges to overcome when trying to achieve the Triple Aim.As part of an organizational initiative to redesign primary care at a large academic health center, departments of internal medicine, general pediatrics and adolescent medicine, and family medicine worked together to comprehensively redesign primary care. This article describes the process of aligning these three primary care departments: defining panel size, developing a common primary care job description, redesigning the primary care compensation plan, redesigning the care model, and developing standardized staffing.Prior to the initiative, the rate of patient satisfaction was 85%, anticoagulation measurement 65%, pneumococcal vaccination 85%, breast cancer screening 79%, and colorectal cancer screening 69%. These rates all improved to 87%, 75%, 88%, 80%, and 80% respectively. Themes around key challenges to departmental integration are identified: (1) implementing effective communication strategies; (2) addressing specialty differences in primary care delivery; (3) working within resource limitations; and (4) developing long-term sustainability.Primary care in this large academic health center was transformed through developing a united primary care leadership team that bridged individual departments to create and adopt a common vision and solutions to shared problems. Our collaboration has achieved improvements across patient satisfaction, clinical safety metrics, and publicly-reported preventive care outcomes.The description of this experience may be useful for other academic health centers or other non-integrated delivery systems undertaking primary care practice transformation.

SUBMITTER: Koslov S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5027069 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Across the divide: "Primary care departments working together to redesign care to achieve the Triple Aim".

Koslov Steven S Trowbridge Elizabeth E Kamnetz Sandra S Kraft Sally S Grossman Jeffrey J Pandhi Nancy N

Healthcare (Amsterdam, Netherlands) 20160228 3

<h4>Background</h4>Primary care is considered the foundation of an effective health care system. However, primary care departments at academic health centers have numerous challenges to overcome when trying to achieve the Triple Aim.<h4>Methods</h4>As part of an organizational initiative to redesign primary care at a large academic health center, departments of internal medicine, general pediatrics and adolescent medicine, and family medicine worked together to comprehensively redesign primary c ...[more]

PMID: 27637827

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Project description:BackgroundPoor transitions of care leads to increased health costs, over-utilization of emergency room departments, increased re-hospitalizations and causes poor patient experiences and outcomes. This study evaluated Telehealth feasibility in improving transitions of care.MethodsThis is a 12-month randomized controlled trial, evaluating the use of telehealth (remote patient monitoring and video visits) versus standard transitions of care with the primary outcomes of hospital readmission and emergency department utilization and secondary outcomes of access to care, medication management and adherence and patient engagement. Electronic Medical Record data, Health Information Exchange data and phone survey data was collected. Multi-variable logistic regression models were created to evaluate the effect of Telehealth on hospital readmission, emergency department utilization, medication adherence. Chi-square tests or Fisher's exact tests were used to compare the percentages of categorical variables between the Telehealth and control groups. T tests or Wilcoxon rank sum tests were used to compared means and medians between the two randomized groups.ResultsThe study conducted between June 2017 and 2018, included 102 patients. Compared with the standard of care, Telehealth patients were more likely to have medicine reconciliation (p = 0.013) and were 7 times more likely to adhere to medication than the control group (p = 0.03). Telehealth patients exhibited enthusiasm (p = 0.0001), and confidence that Telehealth could improve their healthcare (p = 0.0001). Telehealth showed no statistical significance on emergency department utilization (p = 0.691) nor for readmissions (p = 0.31). 100% of Telehealth patients found the intervention to be valuable, 98% if given the opportunity, reported they would continue using telehealth to manage their healthcare needs, and 94% reported that the remote patient monitoring technology was useful.ConclusionsTelehealth can improve transitions of care after hospital discharge improving patient engagement and adherence to medications. Although this study was unable to show the effect of Telehealth on reduced healthcare utilization, more research needs to be done in order to understand the true impact of Telehealth on preventing avoidable hospital readmission and emergency department visits.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.Gov ID: NCT03528850 Date Registered (Retrospective): 5/18/2018. Status: Completed. IRB #: 970227.

Project description:ObjectiveTo understand how health systems are facilitating primary care redesign (PCR), examine the PCR initiatives taking place within systems, and identify barriers to this work.Study settingA purposive sample of 24 health systems in 4 states.Study designData were systematically reviewed to identify how system leaders define and implement initiatives to redesign primary care delivery and identify challenges. Researchers applied codes which were based on the theoretical PCR literature and created new codes to capture emerging themes. Investigators analyzed coded data then produced and applied a thematic analysis to examine how health systems facilitate PCR.Data collectionSemi-structured telephone interviews with 162 system executives and physician organization leaders from 24 systems.Principal findingsLeaders at all 24 health systems described initiatives to redesign the delivery of primary care, but many were in the early stages. Respondents described the use of centralized health system resources to facilitate PCR initiatives, such as regionalized care coordinators, and integrated electronic health records. Team-based care, population management, and care coordination were the most commonly described initiatives to transform primary care delivery. Respondents most often cited improving efficiency and enhancing clinician job satisfaction, as motivating factors for team-based care. Changes in payment and risk assumption as well as community needs were commonly cited motivators for population health management and care coordination. Return on investment and the slower than anticipated rate in moving from fee-for-service to value-based payment were noted by multiple respondents as challenges health systems face in redesigning primary care.ConclusionsGiven their expanding role in health care and the potential to leverage resources, health systems are promising entities to promote the advancement of PCR. Systems demonstrate interest and engagement in this work but face significant challenges in getting to scale until payment models are in alignment with these efforts.

Project description:BackgroundGlobally, the burden of cancer on population health is growing. Recent trends such as increasing survival rates have resulted in a need to adapt cancer care to ensure a good care experience and manageable expenditures. eHealth is a promising way to increase the quality of cancer care and support patients and survivors.ObjectiveThe aim of this systematic review was 2-fold. First, we aimed to provide an overview of eHealth interventions and their characteristics for Dutch patients with and survivors of cancer. Second, we aimed to provide an overview of the empirical evidence regarding the impact of eHealth interventions in cancer care on population health, quality of care, and per capita costs (the Triple Aim domains).MethodsThe electronic databases Web of Science, PubMed, Cochrane, and Ovid PsycINFO were searched using 3 key search themes: eHealth interventions, cancer care, and the Netherlands. The identified interventions were classified according to predetermined criteria describing the intervention characteristics (eg, type, function, and target population). Their impact was subsequently examined using the Triple Aim framework.ResultsA total of 38 interventions were identified. Most of these were web portals or web applications functioning to inform and self-manage, and target psychosocial factors or problems. Few interventions have been tailored to age, disease severity, or gender. The results of this study indicate that eHealth interventions could positively affect sleep quality, fatigue, and physical activity of patients with and survivors of cancer. Inconclusive results were found regarding daily functioning and quality of life, psychological complaints, and psychological adjustment to the disease.ConclusionseHealth can improve outcomes in the Triple Aim domains, particularly in the population health and quality of care domains. Cancer-related pain and common symptoms of active treatment were not targeted in the included interventions and should receive more attention. Further research is needed to fully understand the impact of eHealth interventions in cancer care on participation, accessibility, and costs. The latter can be examined in economic evaluations by comparing eHealth interventions with care as usual.

Project description:BackgroundIn response to growing pressures on primary care, leaders have introduced a wide range of workforce and practice innovations, including team redesigns that delegate some physician tasks to nonphysicians. One important question is how such innovations affect care team members, particularly in view of growing dissatisfaction and burnout among healthcare professionals. We examine the work experiences of primary care physicians and staff after implementing Lean-based workflow redesigns. This included co-locating physician and medical assistant dyads, delegating significant responsibilities to nonphysician staff, and mandating greater coordination and communication among all care team members.MethodsThe redesigns were implemented and scaled in three phases across 46 primary care departments in a large ambulatory care delivery system. We fielded 1164 baseline and 1333 follow-up surveys to physicians and other nonphysician staff (average 73% response rate) to assess workforce engagement (e.g., job satisfaction, motivation), perceptions of the work environment, and job-related burnout. We conducted multivariate regressions to detect changes in experiences after the redesign, adjusting for respondent characteristics and clustering of within-clinic responses.ResultsWe found that both physicians and nonphysician staff reported higher levels of engagement and teamwork after implementing redesigns. However, they also experienced higher levels of burnout and perceptions of the workplace as stressful. Trends were the same for both occupational groups, but the increased reports of stress were greater among physicians. Additionally, members of all clinics, except for the pilot site that developed the new workflows, reported higher burnout, while perceptions of workplace stress increased in all clinics after the redesign.ConclusionsOur findings partially align with expectations of work redesign as a route to improving physician and staff experiences in delivering care. Although teamwork and engagement increased, the redesigns in our study were not enough to moderate long-standing challenges facing primary care. Yet higher levels of empowerment and engagement, as observed in the pilot clinic, may be particularly effective in facilitating improvements while combating fatigue. To help practices cope with increasing burdens, interventions must directly benefit healthcare professionals without overtaxing an already overstretched workforce.

Project description:BackgroundType 2 diabetes can be prevented through lifestyle programs like the Diabetes Prevention Programs (DPP), but few people with prediabetes participate in them, in part because their insurance does not reliably cover DPPs. Prior studies have not focused on payor-level barriers.ObjectiveTo understand barriers to DPP uptake that exist and intersect at different levels (patients, PCPs, and payors) to inform strategies to improve diabetes prevention in primary care settings through interviews with PCPs and payors.DesignFrom May 2020 to October 2021, we conducted remote, semi-structured interviews with PCPs and payors.ParticipantsPCPs were from primary care practices affiliated with one mid-Atlantic academic system. Payor leaders were from regional commercial, Medicare, and Medicaid plans.ApproachUsing a standardized interview guide focused on barriers, facilitators, and potential intervention components, interviews were audio-recorded using Zoom and professionally transcribed. Two reviewers double-coded transcripts using the framework analytic approach.Key resultsWe interviewed 16 PCPs from 13 primary care clinics and 7 payor leaders representing 6 insurance plans. Two themes emerged from PCP reports of patient-level barriers: (1) lack of programs and insurance coverage of resources to address nutrition and exercise and (2) inadequate resources to address social determinants of health that impact diabetes prevention. Among barriers PCPs faced, we identified two themes: (1) low PCP knowledge about DPPs and misperceptions of insurance coverage of DPPs and (2) inadequate clinical staff to address diabetes prevention. Barriers common to PCPs and payors included (1) absence of prediabetes quality measures and (2) inadequate engagement of PCPs and patients with payors.ConclusionsDiscussions with PCPs and payors revealed systemic barriers that suggest important priorities to improve prediabetes clinical care, including universal coverage of DPPs, clarity about coverage benefits, data reporting and outreach by payors to PCPs, and adoption of appropriate prediabetes quality measures.

Project description:BackgroundIncreased awareness of the world's problematic growing health care expenditure and health care shortages requires sustainable use of available resources. To promote cultural changes in medical mindsets, societies representing medical specialties have developed new Choosing Wisely strategies. The Valais Medical Society and the Valais Pharmacy Association have developed an interprofessional collaboration project entitled "Less-is-more Together-PPI" to analyze and optimize change management practices focusing on the prescription and deprescription of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs).ObjectiveThis study aims to enhance interprofessional collaboration between physicians, pharmacists, and patients to optimize PPI use, avoid unnecessary treatments and improve therapeutic adherence to indicated therapies, and to analyze hindrances and facilitators to implementing interprofessional Less-is-more strategies in the field.MethodsHome-dwelling adults domiciled in Valais and prescribed PPIs in the last 6 months will be invited to participate in this observational study. The studied subpopulation will be constituted of consenting patients whose physicians and pharmacists also voluntarily agree to participate. The process of collecting, pooling, transmitting, evaluating, and protecting data has been validated by the Human Research Ethics Committee of the Canton Vaud.ResultsThe Primary Triple Aim outcome measures will be (1) population health: patient's assessment of their own health, functional status, and disease burden using a monthly questionnaire for 6 months; Behavioral/physiological factors will be investigated using a final questionnaire at 6 months, (2) experience of care: assessment using a final questionnaire for participating patients, pharmacists and physicians, and an analysis of negative/positive experiences via 6 follow-up questionnaires, and (3) Per capita cost: participants' fluctuating or decreasing PPI intake (number of pills/dosage) and an analysis of participants' different categories following their medical prescription, in relation to possible bias effects on the overall drug intake of the population studied. Secondary outcomes will be participation rates; patient, physician, and pharmacist follow-up; and evaluations of participants' experiences and their perceived benefits, as well as whether the interprofessional process can be improved.ConclusionsThis project seeks a deeper understanding of how Less-is-more and smarter-medicine strategies are perceived by patients and health care providers in their daily lives in a very specific context. It will reveal some of the hindrances to and facilitators for efficient cultural change toward a more sustainable health care system. The results will be useful to optimize and scale up further Choosing Wisely approaches.International registered report identifier (irrid)DERR1-10.2196/13896.

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Across the divide: "Primary care departments working together to redesign care to achieve the Triple Aim".

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Across the divide: "Primary care departments working together to redesign care to achieve the Triple Aim".

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