Health Coaching in the Teamlet Model: A Case Study

P rimary care is often viewed as a team-based activity.Yet many practices have experienced difficulty implementing high-performing teams 1 .The larger the team, the more time and energy are spent communicating among team members and the greater the probability of fumbled handoffs.Smaller teams may have advantages.San Francisco General Hospital's Family Health Center (FHC), a residency teaching clinic, has explored the use of small, two-person teams called "teamlets."2,3 A teamlet consists of a clinician (physician, nurse practitioner or physician assistant) and health coach who work together consistently and collaboratively.Both teamlet members share responsibility for the health of their patient panel.The primary function of the health coach is to assist patients to gain the knowledge, skills, and confidence to self-manage their chronic conditions.Specifically, health coaches