Introduction

The Academic Chronic Care Collaborative

The Academic Chronic Care Collaborative is an initiative of the American Association of Medical Colleges' (AAMC) Institute for Improving Clinical Care, which was established in 2003 to promote health care innovations in academic centers throughout the country.

Beginning in January 2005 the Academic Chronic Care Collaborative (URL: http://www.improvingchroniccare.org/index.php?p=ACCC&s=41) coordinated the efforts of 48 teams from 22 medical schools and teaching hospitals that are working to strengthen the quality of chronic care provided through their clinics.

Jointly led by Dr. David P. Stevens, director of the AAMC's Institute for Improving Clinical Care, and Dr. Ed Wagner, director of the MacColl Institute for Healthcare Innovation at the Center for Health Studies, the Academic Chronic Care Collaborative aimed to:

• Improve the care of patients who are chronically ill and receive their care in academic settings.
• Ensure that clinical education associated with such care occurs in an exemplary academic environment.
• Capture the unique aspects of implementing the Chronic Care Model in academic settings.

Enhancing the Chronic Care of Disadvantaged Populations in Academic Care Settings

To enhance and disseminate the work of the Academic Chronic Care Collaborative, Delmarva Foundation and the American Association of Medical Colleges led an initiative on behalf of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) entitled "Enhancing the Chronic Care of Disadvantaged Populations in Academic Care Settings."

The objective of the initiative was twofold:

• Capture innovative best practices, lessons learned, and success stories from high-performing academic settings.
• Rapidly disseminate the information among Academic Chronic Care Collaborative participants and academic clinics (beyond those reached by the collaborative) that serve disadvantaged populations.

The Site-Visit Toolkit

To accomplish this dual purpose, the American Association of Medical Colleges, AHRQ, and Delmarva Foundation selected four exemplary Academic Chronic Care Collaborative organizations from around the country to share key strategies and interventions, tools, and outcomes with other Academic Chronic Care Collaborative participants. The four sites were:

• Summa Health System, Akron, Ohio.
• Oregon Health & Science University, Portland Oregon.
• University of Cincinnati Academic Health Center, Cincinnati, Ohio.
• Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee.

How to Use This Toolkit

This toolkit provides materials that explain the concepts, change strategies, tools, and resources to teach residents and improve care for patients with chronic illness in an academic setting. It will assist academic healthcare environments in implementing the Chronic Care Model approach.

Depending on one's knowledge of the Chronic Care Model, the site can be easily navigated to advance an organization's progress. The lessons learned by the organizations involved in the Academic Chronic Care Collaborative provide a guide to others implementing the model. Adapting and replicating their best practices saves time and reduces the cost of implementation. 

Each section is self contained; reader may navigate the site based on interest and familiarity with the model or principles: 

• Engaging Leadership.
• Harnessing the Academic Culture.
• Putting the Chronic Care Model Into Practice.
• Health Professions Education for Chronic Care.

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