The shared medical appointment: a proposed model of medical appointments.

Today's healthcare providers are struggling more than ever with providing high-quality care and while controlling the spiraling costs of healthcare. The demands of an aging population, combined with a shrinking pool of medical personnel, have brought challenges to the medical office where doctors are saddled with the need of improving access to medical care. Recruiting new partners, using physician assistants and nurse practitioners, and seeing more patients in a workday are some ways doctors are trying to meet these challenges. For the most part, that does not solve the problems afflicting most physicians and practices. This article will discuss the concept of the shared medical appointment and how it might be applied to most medical practices.