TY - JOUR KW - Child KW - Child Health Services/organization & administration KW - Continuity of Patient Care/organization & administration KW - Disabled Children KW - Health Services Accessibility KW - Health Services Needs and Demand KW - Humans KW - Models, Organizational KW - Patient Care Team KW - Primary Health Care/organization & administration KW - Quality Assurance, Health Care KW - United States AU - J. W. McAllister AU - E. Presler AU - W. C. Cooley A1 - AB - Families who raise children and youth with special health care needs deserve a medical home. They expect a team approach to health care, with coordination across multiple services and settings. Children, youth, and families benefit from the organization of critical information into written care summaries and action plans. If primary care pediatricians, family physicians, and internists are to achieve optimal health care quality and improvement of existing health care delivery, care coordination will be an essential contributing process to their team approach. Several national health policy recommendations identify care coordination as a cross-cutting intervention to fill the gap between what exists and what is needed in health care today. A practice-based care-coordination model, including a definition and vision for care, a framework of structures and processes, and a position description with specific competencies, is needed. Improvement methodology provides an effective means for health care teams to implement and evaluate practice-based care coordination within their medical home. The improvement approach and model must be flexibly applied to have utility across diverse health care organizations. A medical home team approach, with fully developed practice-based care-coordination services, will enhance health and cost outcomes for children, youth, and families and heighten the professional satisfaction of those delivering health care. BT - Pediatrics C5 - Medical Home; Healthcare Policy CP - 3 CY - United States DO - 10.1542/peds.2006-1684 IS - 3 JF - Pediatrics N2 - Families who raise children and youth with special health care needs deserve a medical home. They expect a team approach to health care, with coordination across multiple services and settings. Children, youth, and families benefit from the organization of critical information into written care summaries and action plans. If primary care pediatricians, family physicians, and internists are to achieve optimal health care quality and improvement of existing health care delivery, care coordination will be an essential contributing process to their team approach. Several national health policy recommendations identify care coordination as a cross-cutting intervention to fill the gap between what exists and what is needed in health care today. A practice-based care-coordination model, including a definition and vision for care, a framework of structures and processes, and a position description with specific competencies, is needed. Improvement methodology provides an effective means for health care teams to implement and evaluate practice-based care coordination within their medical home. The improvement approach and model must be flexibly applied to have utility across diverse health care organizations. A medical home team approach, with fully developed practice-based care-coordination services, will enhance health and cost outcomes for children, youth, and families and heighten the professional satisfaction of those delivering health care. PP - United States PY - 2007 SN - 1098-4275; 0031-4005 EP - 33 EP - e723+ T1 - Practice-based care coordination: A medical home essential T2 - Pediatrics TI - Practice-based care coordination: A medical home essential U1 - Medical Home; Healthcare Policy U2 - 17766512 U3 - 10.1542/peds.2006-1684 VL - 120 VO - 1098-4275; 0031-4005 Y1 - 2007 ER -