New models of care that promote population health and put providers at risk for the cost of care are dramatically reshaping how care is delivered in physician practices and hospitals across the country.
CannonDesign recently held three regional panel discussions among top health system leaders and asked them, among other questions, how they are repositioning their workforces in response to evolving models of care.
The leaders' responses unveiled five key trends in workforce staffing and development.
1. Recruiting physicians remains critical. Health systems will need to employ or align with physicians representing the entire continuum of care from primary care providers, to surgeons and medical specialists. Academic medical centers are working harder than ever to retain residents for employment.
2. Team-based care as the new gold standard. In team-based care models, providers work to the top of their licenses, allowing physicians to care for the more complex patients, while mid-level providers can treat less-complex patients, expanding capacity and access. As a result of the surge in team-based care models, expect a growing demand for nurse practitioners and physician assistants as health systems seek to employ them in growing numbers.
3. New roles appearing within practices. On the patient-care side, care coordinators/navigators will become even more prominent. These navigators provide critical support around care coordination and patient intervention. Many practices are also looking at adding non-patient-facing FTEs to improve practice efficiency. These roles include coders, clinical documentation specialists and scribes.
4. Continued use of lean methodology. Even more providers are expected to use lean methodology to remove waste and duplication, and optimize workflows.
5. Decreasing variation in care. Expect more providers to establish standardized clinical pathways to reduce variation, improve quality and lower cost, through the use of committees and work groups.