The Past, Present, and Future of House Calls

This article describes: the origin and evolution of house calls; what is uniquely gained from house calls for both patients and providers; key clinical issues managed at home; evidence that house calls improve outcomes; organization of house call practices; and changes in Medicare reimbursement, technology, and interdisciplinary team care that have influenced the delivery of home-based medical care.

Keywords: Homebound, Home care, Home health care, House calls, Home visits, Home-based medical care

a University of California, San Francisco, UCSF Box 1265, 3333 California Street, #380, San Francisco, CA 94118, USA

b Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, Mount Sinai Visiting Doctors Program, Box 1216, One Gustave Levy Place, New York, NY 10029, USA

c University of Washington, Harborview Medical Center, 325 9th Avenue 359755, Seattle, WA 98104, USA

Corresponding author.

PII: S0749-0690(08)00063-3

doi:10.1016/j.cger.2008.10.005

5 of 16