Understanding the impact of alliances in health care: The multispecialty community provider model.

This empirical study examines whether the multispecialty community provider (MCP) healthcare model has the capacity to deliver improved efficiency and quality in primary healthcare. This model, an example of a professional service supply chain (PSSC), is founded on the principles of a collaborative network. It is being championed as a response to the financial and demographic challenges present in healthcare delivery. Mixed methods: netnography (>4000); participant observation (14 MCP board meetings); and in depth interviews (n=94) are applied to a study of two healthcare MCP alliances, collaborating together to improve services for patients within an accountable care system. A plethora of factors are considered including capacity, demand, access, patient and staff experiences.
Findings show that the MCP alliance structure is a highly complex entity. Success is determined by the capacity of the alliance to accommodate both practice level multi-team complexity, and, networked practice multi-team complexity. Both MCP alliances performed strongly in improving patient access and to a lesser extent in sharing skills and expertise and developing a shared identity. However, evidence of operational buy-in to the higher risk activities associated with developing economies of scale or pooling back-office, or front office resources, present greater challenges. Contributions to the health and operations management literature, along with insights relevant to managerial practice are provided.