The impact of team-based primary care on health care services utilization and costs: Quebec's family medicine groups.

We investigate the effects on health care costs and utilization of team-based primary care delivery: Quebec's Family Medicine Groups (FMGs). FMGs include extended hours, patient enrolment and multidisciplinary teams, but they maintain the same remuneration scheme (fee-for-service) as outside FMGs. In contrast to previous studies, we examine the impacts of organizational changes in primary care settings in the absence of changes to provider payment and outside integrated care systems.

Explaining time elapsed prior to cancer diagnosis: patients' perspectives.

Background: Cancer is the leading cause of death in Canada. Early cancer diagnosis could improve patients' prognosis and quality of life. This study aimed to analyze the factors influencing elapsed time between the first help-seeking trigger and cancer diagnosis with respect to the three most common and deadliest cancer types: lung, breast, and colorectal.

Implementation of an integrated primary care cardiometabolic risk prevention and management network in Montréal: does greater coordination of care with primary care physicians have an impact on health outcomes?

Introduction: Chronic disease management requires substantial services integration. A cardiometabolic risk management program inspired by the Chronic Care Model was implemented in Montréal for patients with diabetes or hypertension. One of this study's objectives was to assess the impact of care coordination between the interdisciplinary teams and physicians on patient participation in the program, lifestyle improvements and disease control.

Does enrollment in multidisciplinary team-based primary care practice improve adherence to guideline-recommended processes of care? Quebec's Family Medicine Groups, 2002-2010.

Background: We investigated whether multidisciplinary team-based primary care practice improves adherence to process of care guidelines, in the absence of financial incentives related to pay-for-performance.

Methods: We conducted a natural experiment including 135,119 patients, enrolled with a general practitioner (GP) in a multidisciplinary team Family Medicine Group (FMG) or non-FMG practice, using longitudinal data from Quebec's universal insurer over the relevant time period (2000-2010). All study subjects had diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or heart failure and were followed over a 7-year period, 2 years prior to enrollment and 5 years after.

Evolution of Experience of Care of Patients with and without Chronic Diseases following a Québec Primary Healthcare Reform.

Objectives. To assess the extent to which new primary healthcare (PHC) models implemented in two regions of Quebec have improved patient experience of care, unmet needs, and use of services for individuals with and without chronic diseases, compared with other forms of PHC practices. Methods.