Patients form their own support group.
Over time, patients develop relationships with others in a way that is very difficult with the 15-minute drop-in visit a couple of times a year.
Group visits in one St. Petersburg family practice residency program are
providing patients with better care and residents with an innovative learning
experience.
The St. Peter model earned the 2002 Patient Care Award for Excellence in Patient
Education Innovation, presented at a conference on patient education sponsored
by the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine.
Dr. Devin Sawyer, first encountered the group visit model during his family
practice residency at Providence St. Peter Hospital in Olympia, Wash. That
group, for pregnant teenagers, combined individualized prenatal care with group
teaching in a setting that fostered the growth of a support network among the
young mothers.
After residency, Dr. Sawyer joined the St. Peter's clinic and expanded the group
visit model to include a similarly structured diabetes group. Like the prenatal
group, the diabetes group focuses on extended group teaching, combined with
individualized patient care.
The bonds patients form during group visits benefit them outside of the clinic
setting as well. Patients of like characteristics meet for an extended visit
that is composed of a didactic session followed by individualized patient care.
Each group has its own provider team that includes physicians as well as health
professionals whose expertise is useful to the patient population.
Before each group visit, the medical
team reviews charts and chooses the focus of the visit. Because the chart review
is done before the group convenes, physicians can spend more time actively
focused on patients and less on review.
Patients meet quarterly for a 2-hour session that begins with checking of vital
signs, body mass index, and immunizations, and blood and urine collection. Each
patient has a brief meeting with a physician who reviews the results and
performs a foot check. The didactic session focuses on concepts of self-efficacy
and self-management, often with guest speakers. Frequently, patients who have
been in the program longer serve as role models for patients just beginning to
come to terms with their disease.
“The idea is that, over the years, you have patients who develop relationships
with others in a way that is very difficult with the 15-minute drop-in visit a
couple of times a year,” Dr. Sawyer said.
While patients certainly benefit from the extended teaching they receive,
residents are also taking home some valuable lessons, Dr. Sawyer said.
“It's an innovative way to deliver patient care. It's not the usual format where
you're ‘double-booked’ and stressed and giving the same talk over and over. My
hope is that when they graduate, they'll have an appetite for innovation.”
Source: Diabetes In Control Dot Com.
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