An integrated model for inner-city health-care delivery: the Deaconess Center

Under the auspices of the Buffalo General Hospital and the faculty of medicine of the State University of New York at Buffalo, a comprehensive delivery system for primary care has been established in a local inner-city neighborhood. At the Deaconess Family Medicine Center, located within an inner-city location of Buffalo, New York, several divisions have been integrated to provide comprehensive patient-oriented primary care. These divisions include a primary care clinic, an urgent care clinic, a substance abuse clinic, and a community pediatrics clinic. Professional services are provided by attending physicians and residents. The horizontal integration of these four divisions is in turn vertically integrated with the tertiary care teaching hospital inpatient and obstetrical services, providing a continuum of patient care. The horizontal integration serves as an entry point for patients to enter the hospital's health-care system, while the vertical integration capability serves to capture any specialized referrals or inpatient needs. This article discusses the structure of the center, with special reference to service integration, service delivery, and patient capture; medical education; and the place of integrated units in the strategic plan of a tertiary care hospital.