Following the success of a one year planning grant focused on improving the delivery of primary care in New York’s hospital-sponsored teaching clinics, the New York State Health Foundation (NYSHF) has awarded GNYHA Foundation a two-year grant to implement a set of best practices to facilitate collaboration in an area that affects both care delivery for patients seeking primary care and the educational experience for residents (specifically, internal medicine residents) who are the principal providers in these settings. GNYHA Foundation will build off the findings of the 2011 planning project by developing a compendium for how residency programs and clinics can implement different scheduling models to maximize continuity of care, as well models that promote clinical teamwork to engage all clinic staff in the patient care experience. To guide the development of this compendium, GNYHA Foundation will establish workgroups comprised of hospital representatives and provide ongoing educational sessions highlighting local and national leaders’ best practices.

As a second phase to the project, GNYHA will invite residency programs and their clinic sites to participate in the initiative to implement one or more elements of the compendium. As New York policy makers continue to encourage reorientation of services to focus more attention on population health, preventative care, and improved primary care, GNYHA Foundation is in a unique position to focus on continuity of care and patient care management in New York’s hospital-sponsored teaching clinics.