Dive Brief:
- PwC’s Health Research Institute (HRI) revealed Tuesday a new report based on healthcare executives' survey feedback on how organizations can better scale their population health efforts.
- The report concluded there are three main keys to scaling population health. It also advises organizations to explore them slowly and adjust as needed.
- The FDA's updated food labeling requirements released last week support the healthcare industry's population health efforts, said the president of the American Medical Association.
Dive Insight:
PwC suggested that the healthcare industry's headway into population health has been through narrow efforts that are bringing promising results.
"These early results signal the full potential of population health if scaled across geographies, diseases and the continuum of care," the report stated, "yet many organizations still struggle to scale their efforts."
In addition to improving the impact of population health, organizations that scale it up and show evidence that it's working are more likely to be rewarded in risk-based deals with insurers, according to the report.
The three main keys to scaling HRI found are:
- Strengthening risk stratification through a whole health approach that addresses medical, social and environmental needs, as well as sharing resources such as electronic health records and claims databases to target population groups. It named Benevera Health and Partners HealthCare as examples.
- Developing a full-service care delivery network with strong care management through an "ecosystem of care" that extends through the community and home, using partners to fill service gaps and extend reach. It listed Ascension Health as a prime example.
- Engaging patients through community resources and running a data-driven operation through programs that prioritize data efforts and provide manageable information for clinicians. It called out the examples of MD Anderson Cancer Center, The Center for Health Equity and Community Engaged Research at The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City.