The Ideal Medical Practice Model: Improving Efficiency, Quality and the Doctor-
Patient Relationship
When you redesign a practice around these principles, you can step off the productivity treadmill
and focus on excellent patient care.
By L. Gordon Moore, MD, and John H. Wasson, MD
What is an ideal medical practice?
What do you get when you mix low overhead with high technology and wrap it around an excellent
physician-patient relationship? You get an ideal medical practice - a practice model designed to
enhance doctor-patient relationships, increase face-to-face time between doctors and patients,
reduce physician workloads, instill patients with a sense of responsibility for their health and cut
wasted dollars from the entire system. The model encompasses the ideal micro practice model,
which focuses on optimizing the smallest functional work unit capable of delivering excellent care:
the solo doctor, even without any staff. The key principles ideal medical practices pursue are high-
quality, patient-centered, collaborative care; unfettered access and continuity; and extreme
efficiency. It is consistent with the AAFP's "new model of care" and the patient-centered medical
home.
Typical Ideal medical practices strive for:
- Care is driven by the patient's needs, goals and values.
- Access is 24-7.
- The care team uses technology to its fullest (e.g., electronic health records, e-mail, Internet
scheduling).
- Patients can see their own physician whenever they choose.
- The majority of the office visit is spent with the physician.
- Patients can be seen the same day they call the office.