Identifying Ways to Improve the Continuity of Care for Patients

Hospital-sponsored ambulatory clinics and outpatient departments are a major component of the primary care delivery system in the New York metropolitan region.

These clinics are training sites for thousands of physician residents in primary care specialties and serve a large number of the uninsured and Medicaid enrollees. Although medical residents gain useful experience, they are also a discontinuous workforce—requiring them to rotate through different departments and assignments, which in turn results in discontinuity of care for patients.

In 2010, NYHealth awarded a planning grant to the Greater New York Hospital Association Foundation (GNYHA Foundation) to identify ways for improving quality and continuity of patient care while adequately training medical residents.