The medical home model is being tried out, studied, and expanded throughout the state of Vermont. I found this series of video clips that were produced by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Health Care Innovations Exchange in September 2012 as part of a webcast. The format is a series of three short informational documentary-style clips explaining the Vermont Blueprint for Health, a medical home model that started about five years ago. In between the video clips there is a panel of professions in the industry talking about their first-hand experiences in transitioning into the medical home model.
The entire webcast is nearly an hour long- so I focused on the documentary-style clips. I found them to be a bit rambling and low on detail, but overall I think they capture the spirit of the medical home and the promise that it brings. Much of it is similar to Dr. Singerland's presentation from last session. The main difference is this presentation focused on specific patients and how their care was improved, and focused less on the details of how the system functions and how reimbursement works.
I found it interesting that the two communities depicted in the clips represent two different spectrums of Vermont life. St. Johnsbury is a small, rural community with an older population. Burlington is a densely populated urban center. There is definitely a sense throughout the presentation that this program is intended to be a blueprint for other communities to follow- both within Vermont and beyond.
One other comment I found interested was from one of the program workers in St. Johnsbury. She described the community there are poor in financial resources but rich in, "people who care". The medical home model seems unique in it's ability to tap into these human resources and add quality to their medical care while minimizing financial burden to the community.
Finally, I liked the concept brought up by one of the speakers that the medical model offers the perfect bridge between primary care and public health. I think this collaboration is critical if we want to get the most value out of our community dollars spent on health care.
If you are interested there is a lot more detailed information on Vermont's Blueprint for Health at the Vermont State website.
The entire webcast is nearly an hour long- so I focused on the documentary-style clips. I found them to be a bit rambling and low on detail, but overall I think they capture the spirit of the medical home and the promise that it brings. Much of it is similar to Dr. Singerland's presentation from last session. The main difference is this presentation focused on specific patients and how their care was improved, and focused less on the details of how the system functions and how reimbursement works.
I found it interesting that the two communities depicted in the clips represent two different spectrums of Vermont life. St. Johnsbury is a small, rural community with an older population. Burlington is a densely populated urban center. There is definitely a sense throughout the presentation that this program is intended to be a blueprint for other communities to follow- both within Vermont and beyond.
One other comment I found interested was from one of the program workers in St. Johnsbury. She described the community there are poor in financial resources but rich in, "people who care". The medical home model seems unique in it's ability to tap into these human resources and add quality to their medical care while minimizing financial burden to the community.
Finally, I liked the concept brought up by one of the speakers that the medical model offers the perfect bridge between primary care and public health. I think this collaboration is critical if we want to get the most value out of our community dollars spent on health care.
If you are interested there is a lot more detailed information on Vermont's Blueprint for Health at the Vermont State website.
I liked your analysis. I especially liked the contrasting of the two towns in Vermont and how even very different towns can adopt this medical model. I think it's great that medicine is moving towards caring more about the patient and not so much the business of it. I think it is crucial that these programs can be implemented without an enormous cost to the towns, and this program seems to be accomplishing just that.
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