Improving Effective Preventative Care Within an Urban Working Population

Area of Science:

• Occupational Medicine
• Healthcare Access
• Primary Care Improvement

Background:

• Low-wage workers often face barriers to accessing primary care.
• Effective primary care is crucial for managing chronic conditions and improving overall health outcomes.
• Standardized processes can streamline healthcare delivery.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of standardized screening and service navigation on primary care access for low-wage workers.
• To determine if these interventions improve patient health perception and team communication.

Main Methods:

• Utilized four rapid plan-do-study-act cycles over 8 weeks.
• Implemented core interventions within each cycle.
• Collected and analyzed data using run charts and aggregate data tables every 2-3 days.

Main Results:

• Increased the percentage of patients with a primary care provider from 52% to 79%.
• Enhanced patients' self-reported health perception from 3.6 to 4.4 (on a 5-point scale).
• Improved team communication and support scores from 3.9 to 4.2 (on a 5-point scale).

Conclusions:

• Patient engagement and standardized referral processes are key to establishing routine, effective care.
• The use of "smart phrases" in electronic health records offers a sustainable method for implementation in other occupational medicine settings.