Introduction:Providing collaborative care is essential to decrease cardiovascular complications of hypertension (HTN). Care coordination models, including the Patient Centered Medical Home (PCMH), are advocated to manage chronic diseases. However, they offer no guidance on collaborative strategies to improve patient outcomes. This project enhanced the PCMH model at a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) through application of interprofessional collaboration (IPC) concepts including role optimization, shared decision making, shared power, and care expertise.Methods:Application of IPC concepts with the key addition of a pharmacist education component was instituted at a Midwestern FQHC over a 60-day period with a single care team. Inclusion criteria included adult patients with a diagnosis of uncontrolled primary HTN (>140/90). Blood pressure, perception of IPC, and patient and care team satisfaction were measured. Descriptive statistics, paired t-test, and unpaired t-test were used for analysis.Results:Twenty-two patients participated in the process change. Mean BP demonstrated a statistically significant decline. Care team perception of IPC improved. Care team members and patients reported satisfaction with the overall process change.Conclusion:This project offers support to increase knowledge of how IPC competencies and concepts can be incorporated into an FQHC and the effect it may have on hypertensive patients being treated under a PCMH model.
Perceptions of collaborative care team members on facilitators and barriers to care and glycosylated hemoglobin level as a diabetes quality metric at a federally qualified health center in Texas
