How Primary Care Produces Better Outcomes: a Logic Model
How Primary Care Produces Better Outcomes: A Logic Model James W. Mold, MD, MPH Department of Family and Preventive Medicine University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Roger I. Lienke, MD Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Brendan Drew, BS Boulder, Colorado Word Count: Key Words: Primary care, logic model, patient-centered medical home, outcomes, attributes 1 ABSTRACT Context: Greater access to primary care is associated with lower health care costs and better health outcomes. The reasons for this are not entirely clear. In an attempt to clarify the links between primary care and outcomes, we constructed a “logic model” based upon a systematic review of the literature and our clinical experience. Methods: We reviewed all publications from a search of the English language literature from 1966 to the present using the search term, “primary care,” plus potentially relevant references from their bibliographies. We then constructed lists of desired outcomes and intermediate outcomes and summarized the evidence supporting the links between them. The principal attributes of primary care were derived from the Institute of Medicine’s 1996 report.1 To identify and categorize the mechanisms leading from attributes to intermediate outcomes, we relied upon our own clinical experience, the published literature, and from others in the field. Findings: We identified 6 primary attributes (accessibility, coordination, sustained care, comprehensiveness, partnership, and person-centeredness) and two encompassing constructs (integration and accountability) that constitute primary care. Proposed causal links to the 8 desired outcomes pass through 14 mechanisms and 14 intermediate outcomes. Conclusions: We hope this model will stimulate further discussion among policy-makers, researchers, educators, and clinicians working to strengthen primary care, the most logical foundation of the health care system.
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