Improving Access to Care: APP Optimization in Ambulatory Care Neurosurgery

Purpose: Healthy People 2020 recognize access to quality healthcare services reduces impact of disease and provides an avenue for health equity. University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) is the tertiary care provider for the state and surrounding areas. The high-volume and complex needs of patients referred to the practice resulted in reduced access to care.

Description: The goal was to improve access to comprehensive neurosurgical care at UAB Medicine by implementing advanced practice provider (APP) clinics. Implementation included the development of a business plan for RN-clinical care coordinators and surgery schedulers.

Evaluation/outcome: Increasing APP utilization allowed the department to meet the goal of improving access to care. We were we able to overcome barriers to implementation by working closely with physicians to develop the best APP model for the practice. We anticipate further growth for our APP schedules as the clinic transformation process continues.

References
1. Healthy People 2020 [Internet]. Washington, DC: US Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, https://www.healthypeople.gov/...