Developing Staffing Models to Support Population Health Management and Quality Outcomes in Ambulatory Care Settings

There are multiple demands and challenges inherent in establishing staffing models in ambulatory health care settings today. If health care administrators establish a supportive physical and interpersonal health care environment, and develop high-performing interprofessional teams and staffing models and electronic documentation systems that track performance, patients will have more opportunities to receive safe, high-quality evidence-based care that encourages patient participation in decision making, as well as provision of their care. The health care organization must be aligned and responsive to the community within which it resides, fully invested in population health management, and continuously scanning the environment for competitive, regulatory and external environmental risks. All of these challenges require highly competent providers willing to change attitudes and culture such as movement toward collaborative practice among the interprofessional team including the patient.