How to Develop the Medical Neighborhood

Abstract

Significant attention has been directed towards developing the medical home and improving the patient experience. The medical home is targeted towards optimizing the quality of patient care while also reducing overall costs. An extension of the medical home is the concept of a medical neighborhood. The medical neighborhood utilizes the success of the medical home and incorporates it into the coordination of care between primary care physician and specialists. In order to create an ideal system, though, the framework for making referrals, ordering tests prior to referrals, documentation and communication of recommendations must be addressed a priori. In this perspective we discuss the necessary steps to implement a medical neighborhood for patients with chronic medical conditions and the use of medical technology to facilitate this process.