RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Nurse practitioners in primary care. VI. Assessment of their deployment with the Utilization and Financial Index
JF Canadian Medical Association Journal
JO CMAJ
FD Canadian Medical Association
SP 1103
OP 1108
VO 114
IS 12
A1 W. O. Spitzer
A1 R. S. Roberts
A1 T. Delmore
YR 1976
UL http://www.cmaj.ca/content/114/12/1103.abstract
AB The impact of multidisciplinary teams that incorporate nurse practitioners on total use of health services was measured with the new Utilization and Financial Index (UF-Index). The data from two studies, a randomized controlled trial and a before-and-after study, showed that, in spite of large increases in use of ambulatory services by practice populations served by family physician-nurse practitioner teams, the ultimate effect has been a substantial reduction in total use of health services. The effect was associated with major reductions in hospital care for the same populations. Such economic advantages to society proved feasible within a fee-for-service context and in settings where rigorous evidence demonstrated no concurrent deterioration in health status of patients or in quality of care.