Sharing concern with others struggling to keep small rural hospitals fiscally afloat, while fostering a high level of physician involvement and satisfaction, describes best the goal faced in designing a simple, fruitful health care management strategy this session can describe. Our approach: to interview 30 employee-health care physicians/ARNPs at seven family-care clinics with the intent of analyzing findings and implementing provider solutions to the time-money issues faced daily by health clinics affected by managed care. First, we generated a written interview tool that can be used by session attendees. It prompted responses on patient issues, referral patterns, equipment concerns, facility needs, and daily logistics. Next, we conducted 30 one-hour follow-up in-person interviews with these clinicians, resulting in a series of replicable individual written profiles and proposed crosscutting inter-professional initiatives. The project helped clinicians to focus specifically, to formalize ideas, and to be part of solution statements. It also served as an opportunity to create a composite of the Hospital Division at a time when rural hospitals are facing new and significant practice challenges. Finally, the project summary suggests solutions that could be used in any primary care setting. The findings present a unique opportunity for viewing issues and solutions faced daily in family practice primary care clinics. Replication of our methods and examination of our findings could lead others to get new ideas from their (employee) health care providers, who, like ours will feel listened to, and participate in enhancing their own inter-professional communications.
Learning Objectives: To comprehend and replicate interview tools and techniques and overview solutions to issues posed in hospital-owned small clinic-based primary care settings
Keywords: Communication, Health Care Politics
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: Island Health Northwest, Anacortes, WA
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.