Western Sierra is committed to patient-centered health care, where the primary care provider is the foundation for your health care needs.
In order for patient-centered care to succeed, primary care providers and patients must establish open and honest relationships to determine health care needs, from dealing with a chronic illness such as diabetes or high-blood pressure to facing a substance abuse issue.
A patient-centered medical home offers a team-based approach, providing comprehensive, coordinated, accessible health care focused on quality and safety. Patients are treated with respect, dignity, and compassion — and their care is available at the right time and place, in a way that best meets the patient’s needs.
Finally, a patient-centered focus demands that providers concentrate on the health care provided – and not the patient’s ability to pay.
Here are some other features of the patient-centered medical home:
- Patient-centered: A partnership among practitioners, patients and their families ensures that decisions respect patients’ wants, needs and preferences, and that patients have the education and support they need to make decisions and participate in their own care.
- Comprehensive: A team of care providers is accountable for a patient’s physical and mental health care needs, including prevention and wellness, acute care and chronic care.
- Coordinated: Care is organized across all elements of the broader health care system, including specialty care, hospitals, home health care, community services and support.
- Accessible: Patients are able to access services with shorter waiting times, with after-hours care, 24/7 electronic or telephone access, and communication through health IT innovations.
- Committed to quality and safety: Clinicians and staff enhance quality improvement to ensure that patients and families make informed decisions about their health.