The federal government released a brief announcement yesterday that has real significance to field care providers.
There is the explicit acknowledgement that the framework surrounding our profession has changed. Most of us recognize we work at the intersection of health care and public safety; the health care sphere has been changing dramatically for some time now. Model systems in Texas, Colorado and Minnesota have been exploring the opportunities to evolve into more effective, better integrated health systems, with measurable success reducing longer term care costs. The feds have both recognized and encouraged these explorations and are drafting road maps for other systems to follow.
The implications are enormous. Tomorrow’s providers may not be operating in the same environment as we do today. The educational system will need to expand the knowledge base necessary to achieve competency in the new roles we will fulfill.
For those of us in the field, we need to consider if and how large scale changes can be incorporated locally. This level of evolution represents both opportunity and a threat to existing operations. Forward-thinking systems are already breaking ground; systems would be remiss if not at least taking a serious look at how changes in reimbursement and health care philosophy will impact them in the very near future.
There’s one more implication in this draft paper: Transporting patients to emergency departments will no longer be the only way we will receive reimbursement. In another words, the “you call, we haul, that’s all” paradigm is changing, and for very valid reasons. This will be a tough change to take on. After all, we have been in this mindset for almost all of our 50-year existence. Providers can embrace this shift — or at least tolerate its impact. To do anything else would be an unwise choice.
