The advanced medical home is taking your primary health care to the next level. To understand what an advanced medical home is, let’s start at base level – the medical home.
Patient-Centered Medical Home
A medical home, also known as a patient-centered medical home (PCMH), is a model for the way your care is delivered. This care model helps your health care team effectively manage your medical needs – through visit coordination, information sharing, chronic disease prevention and management, and results measurement.
The goal of a medical home is to provide complete and constant medical care to patients in an effort to improve their outcomes and experience – while also controlling costs.
Image courtesy of the Advisory Board Company
Advanced Medical Home
The advanced medical home builds on the foundation of the traditional medical home described above but advances the model to make it more holistic and inclusive of all health care components. It does this by including an innovative care team and focused practice operations, and by working closely with patients to identify those with higher health risks. The care team helps you determine a personalized plan to help you reach your health care goals. This “2.0 version of the medical home” offers even more to patients, such as:
- More nursing staff on the teams
- Increased support and programmatic elements for patients managing chronic conditions such as diabetes, asthma or cancer
- Onsite behavioral health specialists
- Medication management services for patients taking multiple costly medications
Advanced medical home practices aim to address all of a patient’s physical and mental needs within their circle of care.
Studies show that patients who have an advanced medical home care team have better support and communication, have stronger relationships with their providers and ultimately save time and money.
How To Ensure Your PCP is Part of an Advanced Medical Home
The best way to do this is ask your provider. Medical homes are continuing to gain traction. There was a 300 percent increase in the number of medical homes in the three years from 2010-2013, according to the Advisory Board Company but you’ll want to verify that your provider identifies as a advanced medical home and offers these additional services.
Advanced medical home practices aim to address all of a patient’s physical and mental needs within their circle of care. In an age of technology and decreased face-time, this is a refreshing return to true “patient-centered” holistic care.
