The Goldilocks problem: Healthcare delivery models for children with medical complexity.

Health systems have increasingly adapted elements of the medical home model in designing complex care programs for children with medical complexity (CMC). In recent years, several key complex care program designs have emerged. These programs have been shown to be effective in improving the quality and cost of care for CMC. In designing and implementing a complex care model, there are many variables a health system must consider to ensure program viability. To address CMC across the continuum of care, tertiary care systems should implement a portfolio of complex care models to accommodate the population's diverse needs. Further study is needed to establish 'gold standards' for complex care delivery models, but a major factor affecting program innovation is reimbursement, as the fee for service model does not adequately support the enhanced services required to ensure high value, high quality care for CMC. It is thus critical that stakeholders from health systems and payers align to engage in innovation in complex care delivery design and implementation. Without this partnership, advances in care delivery for CMC will be limited.

A Tertiary Care-based Complex Care Program: Improving Care for Children With Medical Complexity.

OBJECTIVE: Children with medical complexity (CMC) have significant health care costs, but they also experience substantial unmet health care needs, hospitalizations, and medical errors. Their parents often report psychosocial stressors and poor care satisfaction. Complex care programs can improve the care for CMC. At our tertiary care institution, we developed a consultative complex care program to improve the quality and cost of care for CMC and to improve the experience of care for patients and families. METHODS: To address the needs of CMC at our institution, we developed the Compass Care Program, a consultative complex care program across inpatient and outpatient settings. Utilization data [hospital admissions per patient month; length of stay per admission; hospital days per patient month; emergency department (ED) visits per patient month; and institutional charges per patient month] and caregiver satisfaction data (obtained via paper survey at outpatient visits) were tracked over the period of participation in the program and compared preenrollment and postenrollment for program participants. RESULTS: Participants had significant decreases in hospital admissions per patient month, length of stay per admission, hospital days per patient month, and charges per patient month following enrollment (P<0.01) without a tandem increase in readmissions within 7 days of discharge. There was no statistically significant difference in ED visits. Caregiver satisfaction scores improved in all domains. CONCLUSION: Participation in a consultative complex care program can improve utilization patterns and cost of care for CMC, as well as experience of care for patients and families.

The Pediatric Aerodigestive Center as a Tertiary Care-Based Medical Home: A Proposed Model.

Children with special healthcare needs have been identified nationally as a population whose health care is associated with unmet needs; increased morbidity; fragmentation of care and medical errors; caregiver dissatisfaction; and disproportionately high costs. A subset of these children are medically fragile, with medical complexity that requires a reliance on tertiary care-based services-including subspecialty appointments, surgical procedures, and care coordination resources. For medically complex patients affected by upper and lower respiratory tract and gastrointestinal disorders, multidisciplinary aerodigestive centers have emerged at tertiary care centers across the United States to facilitate coordinated, high-quality, and high value care. We propose that the aerodigestive center is an effective vehicle for a tertiary care-based medical home. Within this model, the integration of a general pediatrician will help promote holistic, patient-centered care, and the general pediatrician can serve to both support and provide continuity with the primary care medical home.