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April 22, 2008Fundamental Change Needed to Improve Health Care in the U.S.; Delivery System Requires Major Fix, Say Health Care Leaders |
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From The Commonwealth Fund: In order to achieve significant gains in quality and efficiency, the health care delivery system---the way providers are organized and care is delivered---will need fundamental and systemic changes, say health care and health policy leaders. The call for reform is unequivocal: Nearly nine of 10 (89%) respondents to the latest Commonwealth Fund/Modern Healthcare Health Care Opinion Leaders Survey agree on the need for fundamental change. None of the leaders surveyed said no changes were needed, and only a slim portion---8 percent---said modest changes to the delivery system would be sufficient. "Although universal coverage is a prerequisite for a high performance health system, coverage needs to be coupled with care that is accessible and well coordinated," said Commonwealth Fund President Karen Davis. When polled about specific strategies for improving the organization of the system, a large majority of health care leaders said that strengthening primary care (90%), encouraging care coordination and the management of care transitions (90%), and promoting care management of complex patients (88%) were very important or important to improving health system performance. Opinion leaders voiced strong support for payment reform: 79 percent view it as an important or very important tactic in changing the delivery system. Despite previous Commonwealth Fund research showing the potential of medical homes to deliver high-quality, coordinated, and accessible care, many individuals in the U.S. don't receive this type of care. Consequently, there has been rapid growth of retail health clinics (e.g., drop-in clinics at Wal-Mart or other stores) over the past two years.
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