In Search of Joy in Practice: Innovations from 23 High-Performing Primary Care Practices

This webinar describes innovations that can increase physician’s work-life satisfaction, attract future physicians to the field, and improve the quality of patient care authors.  In research sponsored by the American Board of Internal Medicine Foundation and published in the Annals of Family Medicine investigators sought to identify challenges facing primary care practices and innovations that could facilitate and restore joy in practice.  Chief among the innovations is a movement from a physician-centric model of work distribution to a shared-care model with higher levels of clinical support of physicians and frequent forums for communication that can result in high-functioning teams, improved professional satisfaction and greater joy in practice. Practical solutions to common challenges in primary care were discussed including:

• Proactive planned care, with pre-visit planning and pre-visit laboratory tests;
• Sharing clinical care among a team, with expanded rooming protocols, standing orders, and panel management;
• Sharing clinical tasks with collaborative documentation (scribing), non-physician order entry, and streamlined prescription management;
• Improving communication by verbal messaging and in-box management; and,
• Improving team functioning through co-location, team meetings, and work flow mapping.