FAQ

A medical home is a way of doing primary care. It’s based on a strong partnership between you and your primary care physician (PCP). Your PCP will oversee your care and, when needed, lead a team of medical professionals to help meet your needs. 

Medical homes offer: 

• Complete, high-quality care centered around you
• A focus on you as a whole person 
• The right care at the right time and place
• Improved access to care
• Care that respects your needs and values
• A way to lower costs by not getting unnecessary tests and services

The American Academy of Pediatrics introduced the medical home idea in 1967. All USMD PCPs follow this approach to care. 

All patients who see a USMD PCP are part of our medical home. To get the most out of your care, we ask that you work closely with your PCP and: 

• Give us a complete medical history and let us know if anything changes. 
• Follow your PCP's care plan as directed, including follow-up care and therapies.
• Let your PCP know if you have problems paying for medications. They may be able to help. 
• Tell your PCP if you’re admitted to a hospital, have visited an ER or if you’re seeing a specialist. 
• Call your PCP first if you have an urgent problem or minor emergency. We’re here 24/7.
• Sign up for NextMD, our secure and easy-to-use patient portal.

A medical home is a partnership between you and your PCP. You can expect:

• One place to call for help meeting your health care needs
• Reminders about appointments and tests 
• Tools and support to help you and your family manage long-term health conditions, like asthma and diabetes 
• Emails, patient-satisfaction surveys and online tools to help you manage your health information and make good decisions 

Also, if you ever need to see a specialist or other health care provider, your PCP will put together a team. The goal is to take care of you as a whole person.

A medical home means care is based on your specific needs. Your team may include: 

• Nurses
• Nurse practitioners 
• Physician assistants 
• Medical assistants 
• Care coordinators
• Nutritionists
• Educators 
• Pharmacists 
• Case managers  
• Behavioral health professionals
• Community resources 
• Home health or hospice care services 

Any member of the care team can work with you and offer treatment, education and help.

A care coordinator is a nurse or clinical specialist who helps your PCP care for patients. They:

• Answer questions and help teach you about your health problems 
• Work with insurance companies to find medication support programs and health services
• Manage your care after you’re sent home from a hospital
• Get medical information from your specialists
• Connect you to support groups, disease information classes and other services as needed

The care coordinator also lets you know when you’re due for important services. Examples include annual exams, colonoscopies and mammograms.

Sometimes your PCP will oversee your behavioral health concerns. Other times, you’ll be connected to an outside behavioral health specialist. In this case, your PCP will work closely with the specialist to address your behavioral health needs.

One of the roles of a medical home is to plan for a patient’s special needs, such as translation services or services for the disabled. Knowing about your situation helps your PCP better meet your needs.

Telling us your race or ethnicity is up to you. But we urge you to give us this information. Here’s why. 

Medical research shows that people of some racial or ethnic backgrounds have a greater chance of getting certain diseases. This means you may benefit from special medical screenings, preventive care and treatments. In turn, this may lead to better health outcomes. 

As a medical home, our goal is to offer the best care possible to every patient. This means adjusting our care to meet each person’s needs. When you fill out a survey and tell us how we’re doing, you help us improve the services we offer. 

You don’t need health insurance to be part of our medical home. It’s open to you whether you have insurance or not.

If you don’t have insurance or if you need financial help, let your PCP’s office know. Our social workers and care management teams can connect you to programs that may be available to you. 

We’re happy to help you send your medical records to USMD. To get started, please complete this form and send it to your current doctor’s office. They’ll send your records to USMD.

If possible, please give your USMD PCP's office the name of someone at your previous doctor’s office. That way, we have someone to call if we have any questions. 

You can reach your USMD clinic by phone during and after regular office hours. We’re here 24 hours a day, seven days a week to help with urgent medical problems. 

If you need care after office hours, call your USMD clinic first.* Our on-call service will help you. If you need urgent care or are hospitalized, we make every effort to get your health information to your PCP. This helps your doctor better oversee your care. 

You can also use NextMD to get in touch with your PCP about non-urgent needs. NextMD is a safe, secure way for you and your PCP to communicate with one another. 

In addition, you can use NextMD to: 

• Review and print recent lab work 
• Ask for medication refills 
• Set up appointments for non-urgent needs
• Find helpful information on many diseases, conditions and medications

*If you have a true medical emergency, call 911 or go directly to an emergency room.