News & Media
Jay LaBine, MD - Evolving Patient Care in Michigan
In true physician fashion, Doctor LaBine listened intently as the veterinarian spent 45 minutes explaining the ins-and-outs of care for the dog. Something struck him as odd -- in his years of patient care, Doctor LaBine couldn't remember the last time a medical doctor spent close to an hour explaining outgoing procedures with a discharged patient.
"To me, there was something wrong with that - that really stuck with me," Doctor LaBine said.
Doctor LaBine, a self-proclaimed idealist with a passion for innovation, has used this story as a guiding light as his career has evolved.
For Doctor LaBine, medical care lives and dies by the quality of care patients are receiving. In recent years, he has become determined to take advantage of every resource at his disposal in order to improve care for Michigan residents.
In his current position as chief medical officer with Priority Health, Doctor LaBine and his team work within the integrated delivery system, leading the charge in creating a more welcoming, affordable and accessible health care system for patients.
"Doctors today have to see a bunch of people every day, whether they're sick or not sick, it's fast. It's widget based medicine, but it's the economic model that has forced physicians to do that," Doctor LaBine said. "A lot of physicians today want to be a part of a different care model. In my current position, I can now understand all of these factors that are influencing the behavior of physicians."
As the United States health care system undergoes what he calls a "healthcare revolution," Doctor LaBine emphasizes that physicians across the state -- and even nationwide -- are engaged in creating new patient experiences.
"I really believe we can transform the care model, making it more responsible to patients, providing more seamless care and care that is more consumer-focused," Doctor LaBine said.
Beginning his career in west Michigan, Doctor LaBine has made a home, and a name for himself, in the area -- he's interested in using the abundance of medical talent Michigan holds in order to modernize the way Michigan medicine does business.
"Physicians in Michigan are very passionate about doing what's right for their patients," Doctor LaBine said. "They want a care model that better serves the needs of their patient populations. It's my firm belief that it's going to be physician leadership that changes the traditional systems."
Doctor LaBine and his Priority Health team, serving some 640,000 members statewide, are asking hard-hitting questions, beyond what they can do to improve the traditional health care system. They are working to better understand their community and ask: how do we reach people who may need our help and how do we become more proactive in identifying people who need us?
With a background in general and trauma surgery, Doctor LaBine moved from the operating table to more high-ranking administrative positions -- but his role with Priority is no desk job. In his position, Doctor LaBine feels that by identifying and serving larger community populations, he is just as "hands-on" as ever.
"As I was considering potential career changes, I thought to myself, 'I really love my job of taking care of patients one at a time, but this role has the ability to benefit everyone who enters a hospital,'" Doctor LaBine said. "This is really important work that can reach beyond caring for one person at a time."
As the future of American health care continues to evolve and unfold in its current state of flux, Doctor LaBine's primary goal is to provide a constant to patients -- high-quality, personalized care.
"I want to have a greater impact in serving people," Doctor LaBine said. "I'm responsible for what happens to people who leave the hospital, people in the hospital, even the people who don't show up for care, we have to be more proactive -- that's why it's called health care, not sick care."