Running Group Visits in Your Practice

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-lxiii

   PDF

2. Part 1. Group Visits: The Next Step in Medical Care

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 1-1

      PDF

   2. Introduction to Group Visits

      • Edward B. Noffsinger

      Pages 3-19

   3. The Drop-In Group Medical Appointment Model: A Revolutionary Access Solution for Follow-Up Visits

      • Edward B. Noffsinger

      Pages 21-67

   4. DIGMAs: Strengths, Weaknesses, and Real-Life Examples

      • Edward B. Noffsinger

      Pages 69-98

   5. The Cooperative Healthcare Clinic Model: Following the Same Group of Multi-Morbid Geriatric Patients over Time

      • Christian Seiler

      Pages 99-123

   6. The Physicals Shared Medical Appointment Model: A Revolutionary Access Solution for Private Physical Examinations

      • Edward B. Noffsinger

      Pages 125-171

   7. Physician Buy-In: The Key to Successful SMA Programs

      • Edward B. Noffsinger

      Pages 173-202

   8. A Comprehensive Chronic Illness Treatment Paradigm that Makes Full Use of Group Visits

      • Edward B. Noffsinger

      Pages 203-224

   9. Do Not Abuse Group Visits

      • Edward B. Noffsinger

      Pages 225-243

   10. Reports, Case Studies, and Outcomes Data

       • Edward B. Noffsinger

       Pages 245-341

3. Part 2. How to Implement Your Own Group Visit Program

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 343-343

      PDF

   2. Twenty Essential Steps to Implementing a Successful Group Visit Program

      • Edward B. Noffsinger

      Pages 345-422

   3. A 10-Week Pipeline for Launching New DIGMAs and PSMAs

      • Edward B. Noffsinger

      Pages 423-470

4. Back Matter

   Pages 471-493

   PDF

A Fateful Meeting A year and a half ago, I was sitting at a conference listening to Ed Noffsinger speak, and suddenly had the most profound ‘‘Aha’’ moment of my professional career. Here was someone presenting a practical and tested solution to some of the most challenging problems currently plaguing the US healthcare system, problems such as poor access to primary and specialty care; the uncontainable and rising costs of healthcare; our nation’s relatively poor quality outcomes; and finally, the sense of frustration, disempowerment, loneliness, and disenfranchisement that patients and their families too often experience. Dr. Noffsinger’s solution seemed deceptively simple—shared medical appointments (SMAs) that afford the highest quality healthcare to be delivered in the highest quality care experience—a group setting. Experience collected over a decade and involving more than 100,000 patient visits throughout the United States, Canada, and parts of Europe has demonstrated that SMAs, when used in primary care as well as in the medical and surgical subspecialties, lead to increased access to care, enhanced quality of care, and improved patient satisfaction. For physicians, the efficiency gains and team support from their participation in SMAs translate into much needed relief and improved career satisfaction.

• DIGMA
• Group
• Noffsinger
• Visits
• care
• clinic
• evolution
• geriatrics
• health
• health care
• healthcare
• outcome
• patients
• treatment

From the reviews:

“Edward Noffsinger, is a psychologist who has been developing and refining the shared medical appointment (SMA) model for about 20 years in a variety of practices throughout the United States … . His book … put, the best compilation of information on the subject of SMAs available. … Whether they be generalists or subspecialists, readers having any interest in starting an SMA (or those already running one and seeking to improve it) should absolutely read Running Group Visits in Your Practice.” (William Ventres, Journal of the American Medical Association, Vol. 303 (12), March, 2010)

“Noffsinger a psychologist who was diagnosed with a severe illness outlines the group visit model as a means of increasing physician productivity in healthcare visits access and patient satisfaction. Writing for clinicians, staff administrators and healthcare organizations, he discusses the history and purpose of the current group visit models … and how to successfully implement them in a practice.” (SciTech Book News, June, 2010)

• Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates, Newton, U.S.A.

  Edward B. Noffsinger

The group visit model, which was developed by Dr. Noffsinger in 1996, has consistently been demonstrated to work in actual practice. Dr. Noffsinger is well regarded in the field of primary care; he has published numerous articles on the the topic--NEJM, Journal of Family Practice, and Journal of the American Board of Family Practice. 

Policies and ethics