Successful Models of Care for the Medical Home: Staffing and Roles of the Care Team

Summary: Although Group Health Cooperative's increased their primary care staff, patients are still successful in connecting with their caregivers, says Michael Erikson, vice president of primary care services for Group Health Cooperative. In fact, the key to a patient's understanding of his care team lies in the physician's hands. In this podcast, Erikson discusses the effect Group Health's staff expansion has had on its patients, as well as the many benefits of contacting patients via phone and e-mail in lieu of in-person office visits. Erikson described the staffing strategies it implemented to reduce downstream utilization costs --- from the skill sets required by the staff to the workflow changes needed to accommodate this model of care during a September 9, 2009 webinar, Successful Models of Care for the Medical Home: Staffing and Roles of the Care Team. The 45-minute session is part of HIN's continuing Medical Home Open House webinar series.