Hurlburt Clinic implements Family Healthcare Initiative Published May 4, 2010 By 2nd Lt. Victoria Brayton 1st Special Operations Wing Public Affairs HURLBURT FIELD, Fla. -- The 1st Special Operations Medical Group implemented the new Family Healthcare Initiative May 1, which is designed to facilitate greater continuity between patients and their medical team. Under the FHI system, Hurlburt Field Clinic's family medicine section will be restructured into five teams. Each team will consist of two primary care managers (a physician and nurse practitioner or physician's assistant) and a group of medical technicians. The new structure will improve the patient to provider ratio from 1,500-to-1 down to 1,250-to-1. "We've decreased the amount of people each provider sees so our providers can better focus their care on the smaller group of patients they are responsible for," said Lt. Col. (Dr.) Terence Mitchell, 1st SOMDG chief of medical staff. The FHI is intended to ensure continuity of care consistent with the best medical practices, which means a patient's appointments will be handled by the same provider team each time. That way, the patient can develop a closer relationship with his team and the team can have a better understanding of the patient's history, background and needs. "I really think the patients as well as the providers in our team will enjoy the continuity of care, the closeness with patients and the family care environment," Dr. Mitchell said. Hurlburt Field's goal is to ensure patients have at least 80 percent continuity with their team and 90 percent continuity for TRICARE online appointments when they do not need to be seen within 24 hours. Additionally, appointment types were changed to offer greater flexibility for booking and scheduling appointments. For example, the established appointment type will be used for routine and follow-up care, and can be booked up to 30 days in advance. Urgent care appointments will still be met within 24 hours with the goal of serving 100 percent of active-duty members in the Hurlburt clinic. "The FHI helps give patients even more ownership of their health care by facilitating a close relationship with their teams," Dr. Mitchell said. "We will actively seek patient feedback during this transitional period so we can make sure we're providing our patients with high quality service." For example, if a patient feels strongly about remaining with his current provider instead of changing to a new one, he can make a PCM change request at the TRICARE service center. Although the FHI system may be confusing at first, patients will ultimately benefit from the restructuring and reorganization of medical teams, he said. The Air Force-wide initiative began with two bases in 2008 and added 13 more in 2009. Hurlburt Field will be one of 20 more bases to implement the system in 2010. "The 1st Special Operations Medical Group looks forward to increased continuity in taking care of our own so that we may better serve our warriors and their families," said Col. Dale Agner, 1st SOMDG commander.