Dive Brief:
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Nearly all patients with complex health needs (95%) report problems with the coordination of their care, according to a new Commonwealth Fund report.
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In Commonwealth's survey of 3,009 U.S. adults, 47% of patients with multiple chronic conditions visited the emergency department at least once during the past two years, though 19% of those patients used those services for a condition that could have been treated in a physician's office or a clinic.
- Addressing high-need patients' social and behavioral health challenges, as well as providing better access to care and improving provider-patient communication could help improve outcomes, the report concludes.
Dive Insight:
High-need patients often require more support than others, but there is no infrastructure in place to deliver additional services to them. These patients pose a significant challenge for the healthcare system, Princeton economist Uwe Reinhardt wrote for Vox in November.
Reinhardt addressed the issue of funding for healthcare for high-need patients. However, even with funding for their healthcare in place, it might not be enough for many high-need patients. There are numerous behavioral health problems and unmet social needs that exist within these populations that often go unaddressed.
The Commonwealth Fund suggests the healthcare system implement new strategies to address unmet demands of high-need patients. Increasing communication with these patients and enabling easier access to information could help these patients manage their conditions and, in the long run, help to reduce healthcare costs.