How inclusive leadership can help your practice adapt to change.

Krista W. Bowers, MD, Michaela Robertson, MS, and Michael L. Parchman, MD, MPH W are in the third year of a study to improve diabetes care in 40 small primary care clinics. Practice facilitators are working closely with the physicians and staff in these clinics to implement the chronic care model (CCM), a forerunner of the patient-centered medical home. One dominant theme that has emerged from physician and staff surveys and from observations by practice facilitators is this: When leadership is inclusive of all team members, changes are easier to implement. The purpose of this article is to share observations and findings from the first 20 clinics that are related to the concept of leader inclusiveness and its importance in small primary care clinics working to improve patient care.