By: Sarah Sams, MD, FAAFP
President of the Ohio Academy of Family Physicians
OSU College of Medicine, Class of 1991
Medical education in Ohio is at the forefront of the Patient Centered Medical Home (PCMH) movement. House Bill 198 passed the Ohio General Assembly in spring 2010 and established the PCMH education pilot project to select 40 physician practices to train medical students and residents in the PCMH care delivery model.
Ohio Academy of Family Physicians (OAFP) supported the bill because primary care physicians are integral to the success of a PCMH. The OAFP believes in the fundamental principles of the PCMH including encouraging coordinated care delivery which focuses on wellness and prevention, as well as whole person care.
PCMH initiatives are expanding in Ohio. There are four new initiatives being developed in conjunction with University of Toledo, Wright State, NEOUCOM and Ohio University. Existing initiatives are also expanding:
- Access Health Columbus helps central Ohio primary care practices through process of NCQA certification and providing learning collaboratives for practices that are already certified or in the process of becoming certified.
- Better Health Greater Cleveland is working with federally qualified health centers and building collaboration among Cleveland-based health systems.
- CareSource in Dayton is a Medicaid managed care health plan while Aligning Forces for Quality in Cincinnati was funded through Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
How do you see medical education changing in light of the PCMH movement?
