Applying the chronic care model to homeless veterans: Effect of a population approach to primary care on utilization and clinical outcomes

Objectives. We compared a population-tailored approach to primary care for homeless veterans with a usual care approach. Methods. We conducted a retrospective prolective cohort study of homeless veterans enrolled in a population-tailored primary care clinic matched to a historical sample in general internal medicine clinics. Overall, 177 patients were enrolled: 79 in the Homeless-Oriented Primary Care Clinic and 98 in general internal medicine primary care. Results. Homeless-oriented primary care-enrolled patients had greater improvements in hypertension, diabetes, and lipid control, and primary care use was higher during the ?rst 6 months (5.96 visits per person vs 1.63 for general internal medicine) but stabilized to comparable rates during the second 6 months (2.01 vs 1.31, respectively). Emergency department (ED) use was also higher (2.59 vs 1.89 visits), although with 40% lower odds for nonacute ED visits than for the general internal medicine group (95% con?dence interval=0.2, 0.8). Excluding substance abuse andmental health admissions, hospitalizations were reduced among the homeless veterans between the 2 periods (28.6% vs 10.8%; P