The American Medical Association will consider endorsing team-based care, but with some stipulations, this weekend as it convenes in Chicago for its annual meeting.
The AMA will review a report from its Council on Medical Services, which may leave it amending, changing or striking an existing policy that upholds "physician-led healthcare teams" as the greatest promise for the country's healthcare system, according to a Forbes report.
The AMA prefers for the physician to act as the "quarterback" of care teams, but that stance is growing more controversial as allied health professionals take on greater roles in care delivery amid a primary care physician shortage and expanded coverage under the healthcare reform law.
Under the team-based approach, a range of health professionals — nurses, social workers, pharmacists and others — are involved in the primary care of patients, keeping them out of the hospital setting and also managing chronic conditions when appropriate.
The council's report on models and guidelines for team-based care will undergo debate at the meeting, and potentially, an endorsement. The council's recommended team would still have a physician at the reigns — or "physicians who have ultimate responsibility and authority to carry out the final decisions of the team."
The American Association of Nurse Practitioners has said it disagrees with the council's premise. Rather, it believes team-based care is best approached as a multidisciplinary and non-hierarchal collaboration centered around the patient, according to the report.
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