ReportWatch: The Patient Centered Medical Home

History, seven core features, evidence and transformational change.

With an increased interest from the new Government in the medical home, this report from the Robert Graham Centre in Washington DC is well worth the read. It presents evidence foundational to the concept of the medical home “a partnership approach with families to provide primary health care that is accessible, family-centred, coordinated, comprehensive, continuous, compassionate, and culturally effective”. In addition, the report identifies key elements of a medical home and presents reasons why current practice fails to deliver a patient centred experience.

Based on agreement among several American professional organisations (family physicians, pediatrics, physicians, osteopaths), the seven core features of the medical home are:

1. personal physician – the patient has an ongoing relationship with a personal physician who provides first contact, continuous and comprehensive care
2. physician directed medical practice – the physician leads a team of individuals who collectively provide care for the patient
3. whole person orientation – the personal physician is responsible for all the patient's health care needs either providing them of arranging care with other qualified professional
4. care is coordinated and/or integrated across all elements of the complex health care system and the patient's community
5. quality and safety – hallmarks of the medical home
6. enhanced access is available through systems such as open scheduling, expanded hours and new options for communication between patient, physician and practice staff
7. payment reform – recognising the added value provided to patients who have a patient-centred medical home

The report is available at <http://www.graham-center.org>.

Reference
The Robert Graham Center. (2007). The Patient Centered Medical Home. History, seven core features, evidence and transformational change. Washington: The Robert Graham Center