Meet Your New Colleague, The Virtualist

The primary care model is facing an access crisis, struggling to meet the rising demand for care. An emerging physician archetype offers a solution: the Virtualist.

These primary care physicians focus on delivering care virtually, empowered by clinical AI tools. Embedded in brick-and-mortar teams, Virtualists ensure continuity while managing patients remotely. Under this model, patients gain access - visiting their PCP more often and experiencing 20-40% reduction in median days wait time. Providers gain the ability to engage with their patients more and to increase the number of patients they serve.

Access is broken in today’s primary care model. With populations growing, aging, and getting sicker, PCPs cannot meet the demand for care without a new care delivery model. Coupled with compressed margins, primary care’s sustainability in its current delivery format is at risk. Limits to access inhibit quality, and cost-effective solutions to scaling primary care are few and far between. 

To solve the access problem, primary care needs a new team member: the Virtualist. Virtualists are primary care physicians who focus on providing care virtually, leverage novel AI tools, and integrate as part of a patient’s brick-and-mortar care team. Virtualists, in partnership with brick-and-mortar PCPs, can set the stage for primary care to expand panels and see patients when they need to be seen.

Much like hospitalists evolved to manage inpatient internal medicine, Virtualists are uniquely able to manage patients remotely as continuity for PCPs. Much can be done remotely, with Virtualists managing the full spectrum of primary care, addressing patient needs from preventive care to chronic disease management. Virtualists are delivering continuity care, seeing new patients, chronic disease management, annual wellness visits, and post-discharge visits in addition to transactional sick visits. A key delineation between Virtualists and other remote care models is the integration of Virtualists into the patient’s care team. As a core member of the care team, embedded Virtualists collaborate with the team using the same medical record and tools, while expertly leveraging 24/7 access via a virtual platform to continuously monitor and engage with patients. Virtualists use clinical AI tools to investigate patient complaints, find and review the most appropriate patient information, proactively check-in with patients between visits, and route patients to the right point of care.

K Health partners with leading health systems, such as Cedars-Sinai and Hackensack Meridian Health, to integrate Virtualists with brick-and-mortar clinics. At one partner, care teams work with embedded Virtualists to manage their patient panels, ensuring seamless handoffs. With this increased access, brick-and-mortar PCPs can redesign care delivery pathways. This can look like more frequent follow-ups post-medication change or vital checks, discussion of abnormal labs, and triaging new clinical concerns with high administrative burden (e.g., obesity, anxiety) to Virtualists. With Virtualists as part of the care team, the access tools mimic those of brick-and-mortar and create a seamless front door to care through streamlined access channels. Patients schedule with Virtualists during checkout at the clinic, through patient portal self-scheduling, at the call center, or through any other available scheduling method. 

Primary care clinics that have partnered with K Health to embed Virtualists in their care teams have seen significant improvement to their patient engagement and access metrics. Since the Virtualist model was implemented, PCPs at these clinics have spent more time with their patients, not less. At the same time, these clinics achieved a 20-40% reduction in median days wait for appointments and an ~5% increase in the percent of visits each PCP does with their own panelled patients. Virtualists create access while promoting continuity, ensuring patient needs are managed longitudinally and serving as a foundation for care teams to manage mega-panels.

Combining the expertise of a primary care physician with clinical AI, Virtualists empower care teams to expand access, improve continuity, and increase patients served. This innovative model offers a sustainable approach to addressing the rising demand of primary care.

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