3. A primary care group has dramatically increased its availability to patients over the past 10 years. As the group added partners, it expanded from its initial single location to the current four satellite locations over that period.

The next phase of focusing on access was an after-hours clinic option that rotated one night each week across each location. This approach allowed the physicians as well as the staff to have some quality-of-life balance but still service patient needs. In the past year, the group also followed that approach with weekend hours. Some of the younger partners in the group have increasingly suggested that these approaches may be beneficial in today’s marketplace, but they are insufficient in response to customer expectations. A core number of the physicians have suggested that it is a twofold challenge not only of leakage but also of not even knowing where patients are going for afterhour care. The group has a strong brand name and has 42 primary care physicians and 15 nurse practitioners. The group has recently allowed patients to schedule appointments online through the patient portal, but a significant number of the physicians were resistant to the change. To maintain the group’s access advantage, what are three possible approaches this group might consider?