Duration of medical home participation and quality of care for patients with chronic conditions

Objective: To examine whether the length of participation in a patient-centered medical home (PCMH), an evidence-based practice, leads to higher quality care for Medicaid enrollees with multiple co-morbid chronic conditions and major depressive disorder (MDD). Data Sources: This analysis uses a unique data source that links North Carolina Medicaid claims and enrollment data with other administrative data including electronic records of state-funded mental health services, a state psychiatric hospital utilization database, and electronic records from a five-county behavioral health carve-out program. Study Design: This retrospective cohort study uses generalized estimating equations (GEEs) on person-year-level observations to examine the association between the duration of PCMH participation and measures of guideline-concordant care, including the receipt of minimally adequate care for MDD, defined as 6 months of antidepressant use or eight psychotherapy visits each year. Data Collection/Extraction Methods: Adults with two or more chronic conditions reflected in administrative data, including MDD. Principal Findings: We found a 1.7 percentage point increase in the likelihood of receiving guideline-concordant care at 4 months of PCMH participation, as compared to newly enrolled individuals with a single month of participation (p < 0.05). This effect increased with each additional month of PCMH participation; 12 months of participation was associated with a 19.1 percentage point increase in the likelihood of receiving guideline-concordant care over a single month of participation (p < 0.01). Conclusions: The PCMH model is associated with higher quality of care for patients with multiple chronic conditions and MDD over time, and these benefits increase the longer a patient is enrolled. Providers and policy makers should consider the positive effect of increased contact with PCMHs when designing and evaluating initiatives to improve care for this population.