The importance of primary care providers in integrated systems

Primary care physicians are essential to the success of an integrated healthcare delivery system. Because the current supply of primary care physicians does not meet the demand, healthcare systems are competing aggressively to offer primary care physicians attractive incentives to join their systems. Adequate financial incentives are essential, but equally important are incentives related to the types of affiliation established between a system and a physician. This article explains the role of primary care physicians in an integrated healthcare system, presents two examples of how healthcare systems have recruited and deployed primary care physicians, and describes key factors in achieving productive, long-term primary care affiliations.