Discussion: Alternative Acute Care Delivery Models

It’s Friday, and Justine, a 25-year-old bartender, thinks she has a urinary tract infection (UTI). Knowing that she probably can’t see her doctor until the following week, Justine decides to ask for advice from a friend in the medical field. Her friend tells her that she can get 24/7 medical care online for non-emergency conditions, like a UTI. The online service can be accessed on a smartphone, tablet, or computer and includes a virtual visit with a provider and, if needed, a prescription that can be sent to the pharmacy of her choice. Justine is hesitant at first but then decides to utilize this new type of service.

Justine’s decision to utilize a more convenient care option, such as telehealth, instead of her primary care physician (PCP) is becoming increasingly more common in today’s healthcare market. Until recently, patients had few acute care options outside the traditional in-person visit to a PCP or emergency room.

Annually, healthcare consumers make about 50 million visits to a physician for simple acute medical problems (also known as “low acuity conditions”), such as UTIs, bronchitis, and skin rashes (as cited in Mehrotra, 2013). Increasingly, consumers are choosing convenience acute care options (e.g., urgent care, retail clinics, phone visits) over the traditional in-person visit to a PCP or emergency room. This new phenomenon is referred to as the “convenience revolution” (Mehrotra, 2013).

In this Discussion, you will examine characteristics of alternative acute care delivery models, such as services, coverage, accessibility, and the target market. You will also examine the pros and cons of different alternative care models and then explain how they might impact patients with acute and chronic health conditions. Finally, you will suggest ways that a specific model might be used to reach a broader target market.

Reference
Mehrotra, A. (2013). The convenience revolution for treatment of low-acuity conditions. JAMA, 310(1), 35–36. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2013.6825

To Prepare for this Discussion:

• Review this week’s Learning Resources.
• Choose one of the care models listed in the Alternative Healthcare Delivery Models document in the Learning Resources area.
• Find current, credible information about the alternative care model that you selected (e.g., from websites, journals, books etc.). 

By Day 4

Post a comprehensive response to the following:

• Briefly describe the characteristics of the alternative care model that you selected, including services, accessibility (i.e., how do consumers obtain and/or access it?) and coverage (i.e., what is typically covered and who pays for it?).
• Describe the target market (consumers) most likely to use the services provided by this model.
• Identify pros and cons of the model based on its characteristics. Be specific.
• Explain how this model might be impacting people with acute and/or chronic health conditions? Be specific and provide examples.
• Would you use the services provided by this model? Why or why not?