Can Using an Intensive Management Program Improve Primary Care Staff Experiences With Caring for High-Risk Patients?

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Primary Care Medicine
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Complex, high-risk patients pose challenges for primary care.
• Intensive outpatient management teams (IMTs) aim to support primary care without increasing staff burden.
• The impact of IMTs on primary care staff experiences is not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the effect of utilizing intensive management teams on job satisfaction and intent to stay for primary care staff within the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).

Main Methods:

• Longitudinal analysis of 144 primary care providers across 5 VA healthcare systems.
• Two cross-sectional surveys were administered 18 months apart.
• Outcomes measured included job satisfaction and intent to stay; predictors included likelihood of using IMTs.

Main Results:

• Primary care staff more likely to use IMTs reported significantly higher job satisfaction and intent to stay at the VA.
• These findings remained significant after controlling for baseline outcomes and covariates.

Conclusions:

• The VA primary care workforce may benefit from the support of intensive management teams for high-risk patients.
• Further research is needed to elucidate the mechanisms of benefit and optimize IMT implementation.