According to a new study by the Washington-based Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC), little information is available about how physicians can improve care coordination.
While it acknowledges that there is no single recipe for coordination, the study identifies cross-cutting lessons, such as the value of a commitment to interpersonal continuity of care with a clinician as a foundation for coordination. Other strategies range from restricting patient panel sizes to formalized agreements between primary care physicians and specialists on how to handle referrals and consultations, including timely access to specialists and what information should be shared between the practices.
The study’s findings are detailed in a Research Brief available at www.hschange.org/CONTENT/1058/.
HSC is a nonpartisan policy research organization committed to providing objective and timely research on the nation’s changing health system to help inform policy makers and contribute to better health care policy.
