AHRQ Practice Toolbox: Practice transformation

 

This is the seventh in a series of articles from the National Center for Excellence in Primary Care Research (NCEPCR) in the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). This series introduces sets of tools and resources designed to help your practice.

Thus far, this series has discussed topics such as shared decision making, team-based care, and integrating behavioral health and primary care. All of these are important topics, but this raises the question, “How do I make the changes to my practice?” This month’s article discusses AHRQ’s resources for transforming your practice to be able to better introduce these advances.

A good place to start is AHRQ’s Improving Primary Care Practice page, which offers a wide range of resources designed to help practices improve their care. Here are some of the improvement topics for which resources are available:

Building capacity for quality improvement in primary care. Primary care practices often benefit from external support and assistance while they develop the capacity to carry out quality improvement activities as an integral part of their work. These resources describe approaches and supports that are needed to build QI capacity in primary care.

 

Care coordination. The main goal of care coordination is to meet patients’ needs and preferences in the delivery of high-quality, high-value health care. This means that the patient’s needs and preferences are known and communicated at the right time to the right people, which results in safe, appropriate, and effective care. AHRQ’s resources in this area offer examples of care coordination approaches and activities, as well as guidance and models for understanding and measuring patients’ perceptions of care coordination.

Improvement approaches related to patient engagement and support. Several different types of resources related to patient engagement are available. These include the what, why, and how of self-management support, implementing health literacy universal precautions, and engaging patients and families in patient safety efforts.

AHRQ’s Primary Care YouTube channel offers videos from clinical staff, researchers, and others describing their work in many of these areas.

Other resources also are available. One of the most popular approaches to transformation involves taking steps to make your practice a patient-centered medical home (PCMH). AHRQ’s Patient-Centered Medical Home Resource Center website features evidence, examples, and lessons learned from primary care practices that have transformed their approach to the organization and delivery of care. Policymakers, researchers, practices, and practice facilitators can access evidence-based resources about the medical home and its potential to transform primary care and improve the quality, safety, efficiency, and effectiveness of U.S. health care.

 

While the goal of practice transformation is the improvement of patient care and patient outcomes, patient and staff satisfaction (including issues regarding provider burnout) must not be lost in the process. The Clinician & Group Survey of the Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems assesses patient experiences with health care providers and staff in doctors’ offices. Survey results can be used to improve care provided by individual providers, sites of care, medical groups, or provider networks, as well as equip consumers with information they can use to choose physicians and other health care providers, physician practices, or medical groups. The survey includes standardized questionnaires for adults and children. The adult questionnaire can be used in both primary care and specialty care settings; the child questionnaire is designed for primary care settings but could be adapted for specialty care. Users can also add supplemental items to customize their questionnaires.

For many practices, working with a practice facilitator will be a big part of the transformation. Practice facilitation is an evidence-based approach to quality improvement in primary care practices. It will be discussed at length next month. In addition, in July and August, we will discuss optimizing health information technology and workflow in your practice.

Dr. Genevro is a health scientist at AHRQ. Dr. Ganiats is the director of the National Center for Excellence in Primary Care Research at AHRQ.

 

This is the seventh in a series of articles from the National Center for Excellence in Primary Care Research (NCEPCR) in the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). This series introduces sets of tools and resources designed to help your practice.

Thus far, this series has discussed topics such as shared decision making, team-based care, and integrating behavioral health and primary care. All of these are important topics, but this raises the question, “How do I make the changes to my practice?” This month’s article discusses AHRQ’s resources for transforming your practice to be able to better introduce these advances.

A good place to start is AHRQ’s Improving Primary Care Practice page, which offers a wide range of resources designed to help practices improve their care. Here are some of the improvement topics for which resources are available:

Building capacity for quality improvement in primary care. Primary care practices often benefit from external support and assistance while they develop the capacity to carry out quality improvement activities as an integral part of their work. These resources describe approaches and supports that are needed to build QI capacity in primary care.

 

Care coordination. The main goal of care coordination is to meet patients’ needs and preferences in the delivery of high-quality, high-value health care. This means that the patient’s needs and preferences are known and communicated at the right time to the right people, which results in safe, appropriate, and effective care. AHRQ’s resources in this area offer examples of care coordination approaches and activities, as well as guidance and models for understanding and measuring patients’ perceptions of care coordination.

Improvement approaches related to patient engagement and support. Several different types of resources related to patient engagement are available. These include the what, why, and how of self-management support, implementing health literacy universal precautions, and engaging patients and families in patient safety efforts.

AHRQ’s Primary Care YouTube channel offers videos from clinical staff, researchers, and others describing their work in many of these areas.

Other resources also are available. One of the most popular approaches to transformation involves taking steps to make your practice a patient-centered medical home (PCMH). AHRQ’s Patient-Centered Medical Home Resource Center website features evidence, examples, and lessons learned from primary care practices that have transformed their approach to the organization and delivery of care. Policymakers, researchers, practices, and practice facilitators can access evidence-based resources about the medical home and its potential to transform primary care and improve the quality, safety, efficiency, and effectiveness of U.S. health care.

 

While the goal of practice transformation is the improvement of patient care and patient outcomes, patient and staff satisfaction (including issues regarding provider burnout) must not be lost in the process. The Clinician & Group Survey of the Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems assesses patient experiences with health care providers and staff in doctors’ offices. Survey results can be used to improve care provided by individual providers, sites of care, medical groups, or provider networks, as well as equip consumers with information they can use to choose physicians and other health care providers, physician practices, or medical groups. The survey includes standardized questionnaires for adults and children. The adult questionnaire can be used in both primary care and specialty care settings; the child questionnaire is designed for primary care settings but could be adapted for specialty care. Users can also add supplemental items to customize their questionnaires.

For many practices, working with a practice facilitator will be a big part of the transformation. Practice facilitation is an evidence-based approach to quality improvement in primary care practices. It will be discussed at length next month. In addition, in July and August, we will discuss optimizing health information technology and workflow in your practice.

Dr. Genevro is a health scientist at AHRQ. Dr. Ganiats is the director of the National Center for Excellence in Primary Care Research at AHRQ.

 

This is the seventh in a series of articles from the National Center for Excellence in Primary Care Research (NCEPCR) in the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). This series introduces sets of tools and resources designed to help your practice.

Thus far, this series has discussed topics such as shared decision making, team-based care, and integrating behavioral health and primary care. All of these are important topics, but this raises the question, “How do I make the changes to my practice?” This month’s article discusses AHRQ’s resources for transforming your practice to be able to better introduce these advances.

A good place to start is AHRQ’s Improving Primary Care Practice page, which offers a wide range of resources designed to help practices improve their care. Here are some of the improvement topics for which resources are available:

Building capacity for quality improvement in primary care. Primary care practices often benefit from external support and assistance while they develop the capacity to carry out quality improvement activities as an integral part of their work. These resources describe approaches and supports that are needed to build QI capacity in primary care.

 

Care coordination. The main goal of care coordination is to meet patients’ needs and preferences in the delivery of high-quality, high-value health care. This means that the patient’s needs and preferences are known and communicated at the right time to the right people, which results in safe, appropriate, and effective care. AHRQ’s resources in this area offer examples of care coordination approaches and activities, as well as guidance and models for understanding and measuring patients’ perceptions of care coordination.

Improvement approaches related to patient engagement and support. Several different types of resources related to patient engagement are available. These include the what, why, and how of self-management support, implementing health literacy universal precautions, and engaging patients and families in patient safety efforts.

AHRQ’s Primary Care YouTube channel offers videos from clinical staff, researchers, and others describing their work in many of these areas.

Other resources also are available. One of the most popular approaches to transformation involves taking steps to make your practice a patient-centered medical home (PCMH). AHRQ’s Patient-Centered Medical Home Resource Center website features evidence, examples, and lessons learned from primary care practices that have transformed their approach to the organization and delivery of care. Policymakers, researchers, practices, and practice facilitators can access evidence-based resources about the medical home and its potential to transform primary care and improve the quality, safety, efficiency, and effectiveness of U.S. health care.

 

While the goal of practice transformation is the improvement of patient care and patient outcomes, patient and staff satisfaction (including issues regarding provider burnout) must not be lost in the process. The Clinician & Group Survey of the Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems assesses patient experiences with health care providers and staff in doctors’ offices. Survey results can be used to improve care provided by individual providers, sites of care, medical groups, or provider networks, as well as equip consumers with information they can use to choose physicians and other health care providers, physician practices, or medical groups. The survey includes standardized questionnaires for adults and children. The adult questionnaire can be used in both primary care and specialty care settings; the child questionnaire is designed for primary care settings but could be adapted for specialty care. Users can also add supplemental items to customize their questionnaires.

For many practices, working with a practice facilitator will be a big part of the transformation. Practice facilitation is an evidence-based approach to quality improvement in primary care practices. It will be discussed at length next month. In addition, in July and August, we will discuss optimizing health information technology and workflow in your practice.

Dr. Genevro is a health scientist at AHRQ. Dr. Ganiats is the director of the National Center for Excellence in Primary Care Research at AHRQ.