Survey: Physician Leaders See Better Quality Care and Lower Costs as Priorities
Tampa, FL (PRWEB) September 28, 2015 -- Physician leaders strongly support the need to increase the value of health care services by improving quality while also lowering costs, according to a survey conducted by the American Association for Physician Leadership® and the Navigant Center for Healthcare Research and Policy Analysis.
More than 90 percent of survey respondents agreed that reducing unnecessary care that is not evidence-based is an issue of high or very high importance. The survey was completed by 2,398 members of the association.
“Physician leaders have the clinical insights on what constitutes good, strong patient care. They have the insights on how to make the system work effectively to deliver that care,” said Peter Angood, president and CEO of the association. “As a result, compared with non-physician leaders, physicians who are well-educated with leadership and management training often have the better insights on health care and how to run it better.”
Survey respondents also pointed to the importance of organizations and employers committing to physicians’ job satisfaction. Respondents ranked improving physician satisfaction within the profession as a high or very high priority 93 percent of the time. Nearly the same percentage – 92 percent – said increased transparency about quality is an issue of high or very high importance.
The survey also sought physician leaders’ perspectives on patient adherence to their treatments — an ongoing critical topic in the quality arena. The vast majority — 92 percent — of respondents said adherence is an issue of high or very high importance.
Paul Keckley, managing director at Navigant, said the survey used the word “adherence” rather than the more common “compliance” because it infers a level of shared-decision making and shared responsibility for treatment. While he says this recognition of its importance among physician leaders is a positive sign, more of them need to be trained on how to make adherence happen.
“Doctors hold more sway over patient behavior than any other force in the health care system, and yet they do a lousy job of both measuring and monitoring adherence,” he said. “If we really were serious about adherence, there would be no question when an individual leaves the office that they know precisely what they are supposed to do.”
Read the full story on the association website, http://www.physicianleaders.org
About the American Association for Physician Leadership®
The American Association for Physician Leadership® is the oldest and largest professional organization solely dedicated to providing leadership education and management training for the physician workforce. Since its founding in 1975 and as the American College of Physician Executives (ACPE), the primary focus of the association has been to provide superior education and training for physicians of all types and encouraging them to assume more active roles within leadership and management opportunities of the global health care industry. Beyond the thousands of physicians who receive training annually, the organization has grown an active membership – including chief executive officers, chief medical officers, vice presidents of medical affairs and other leadership physicians in more than 45 countries. The expanding portfolio of the association includes more than 100 courses, numerous certificate programs, four master’s degree programs, a doctorate program in leadership under development and a specialized career support program customized for physicians. All physicians can be considered leaders, at some level. Learn more online at physicianleaders.org, by email at info(at)physicianleaders.org, on Twitter at @physicianslead or call 800-562-8088.
American Association for Physician Leadership®
400 North Ashley Drive
Tampa, Florida, 33602
800-562-8088
info(at)physicianleaders(dot)org
About the Navigant Center for Healthcare Research and Policy Analysis
The Navigant Center for Healthcare Research and Policy Analysis focuses on trends, policies and structural shifts in the health care market. Its scope includes hospitals, health systems, physician organizations, health plans, post-acute providers, state and federal health agencies and programs, medical device and drug manufacturers, health investors and retail health. The center uses primary research – surveys, predictive models, focus groups, case studies and advanced analytic tools – along with policy analysis of proposed legislation to inform industry leaders and policy makers about the intended and unintended consequences associated with continued changes in the health care industry.
Lou Ricca, American Association for Physician Leadership, +1 8136362826, [email protected]
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