Bring Health Care Home
In his New York Times opinion article, Bring Health Care Home, Dr. Jack Resnick makes a compelling case for bringing health care home, where a network of coordinated care givers serve patients in a familiar, comfortable setting.
Care of chronic conditions is more often effectively managed in the home setting rather than in a hospital. The coordinated home health care models of today, which feature a broad network of highly-skilled clinicians ranging from physical therapists to physicians, work with the latest communication technologies to offer the best of old and new forms of medical treatment.
A home based primary care program introduced by the Veteran’s Administration more than 30 years ago has reduced hospital stays by 62 percent and led to a 24 percent drop in overall medical costs. The home health care industry can help produce better patient outcomes if more people, especially doctors, are more informed about health care at home options.
About the Author
Michael Fleming, MD, FAAFP is the Chief Medical Officer for Amedisys, and Past President of the American Academy of Family Physicians and the Louisiana Academy of Family Physicians. Dr. Fleming has served as Speaker of the Congress of Delegates of the AAFP and as Board Chair of the AAFP Board of Directors. He serves as an assistant clinical professor in the Department of Family Medicine at the LSU Health Science Center and in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at Tulane University Medical School.
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author, and may not necessarily represent the views of Amedisys.