• Thomas Bodenheimer, Joseph Kucksdorf, Alyssa Torn, and James Jerzak.
• From the University of California, San Francisco (TB); Bellin Health, Green Bay, WI (JK, AT, JJ). tombodie3@gmail.com.
• J Am Board Fam Med. 2021 Jul 1; 34 (4): 866870866-870.

BackgroundBellin Health in Wisconsin has pioneered the colocation and integration of physical therapists into primary care pods.MethodsThis is an observational study based on one in-person visit and several interviews.ResultsFor patients with musculoskeletal complaints, providers make warm handoffs to the physical therapist, who is a few steps away. The physical therapist performs most of the visit, providing diagnosis, treatment, and patient education. Research studies show that-compared with physician management-appropriate patients managed by physical therapists have better outcomes, lower costs, and higher patient satisfaction. In a fee-for-service environment, the business case for this innovation requires an increased number of follow-up referrals to the physical therapy department. In the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) era, physical therapists can provide video visits with equal quality compared with in-person visits.ConclusionThe Bellin Health program is a blueprint for other primary care practices to integrate physical therapists into primary care teams.© Copyright 2021 by the American Board of Family Medicine.

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