Improving clinical access and continuity through physician panel redesign.

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Systems Engineering in Healthcare
• Primary Care Management

Background:

• Projected increases in demand for primary care services in the US due to population growth, aging, and chronic disease prevalence.
• Current primary care models face challenges in meeting escalating patient needs.
• Need for innovative approaches to optimize primary care delivery.

Purpose of the Study:

• To re-design physician patient panels using systems engineering methods.
• To optimize patient access and continuity of care within primary care settings.
• To enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of primary care physician practices.

Main Methods:

• Utilized computer simulation to design physician panels and model appointment systems.
• Incorporated panel size and patient case mix (age, gender) into the design.
• Analyzed baseline data from a large primary care group practice (39 physicians, 20,000+ patients).

Main Results:

• Optimized panel design led to a 44% decrease in patient waiting time.
• Achieved a 40% increase in patient/clinician continuity of care.
• Demonstrated consistent improvements in waiting time and continuity across various panel sizes.

Conclusions:

• Re-designing physician patient panels is an effective strategy to improve primary care access.
• Enhanced panel design positively impacts patient continuity of care.
• Systems engineering methods offer a viable framework for optimizing primary care delivery.