Patient-Centered Medical Home

First, about the name: Many people believe this movement should be called the “Person Centered Healthcare Home”. We agree, but until that movement catches on, “Medical Home” is the name that is by far more common. We will argue about names later.

A Consensus Operational Definition of the Patient Centered Medical Home. Tell us what you think.

The Patient Centered Medical Home is the first movement to bring together insurors, employers, provider groups, health systems (both public and private), and consumer and advocacy groups around a common vision of care. For much more on this movement, go the the website of the Patient-Centered Primary Care Collaborative. When it was begun, behavioral health was considered a possible add on to the model. Over the summer of 2009, behavioral health services began to be seen a central part of the model. Here is my take on why behavioral health should be required in the PCMH.

And in January of 2011, the new National Committee for Quality Assurance (the leading accrediting body for Patient Centered Medical Homes) issued new standards that require substantial behavioral health as part of the PCMH.

And the initial results are awesome. North Carolina expands primary care program and saves millions.