Care Transformation Center Blog
The insights, tools, and resources you need to take on population health management
by Tomi Ogundimu and Abby Burns February 14, 2019
We talk a lot about managing high-risk Medicare patients. Or addressing social determinants of health for Medicaid patients. But what about patients just beginning their lives? In the United States, there are 5.9 infant deaths per 1,000 births—and most of the major contributing factors present clear opportunities for population health intervention: preterm birth and low birth weight, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), maternal pregnancy conditions, and injuries.
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by Andrew McGrath, Darby Sullivan, and Tomi Ogundimu February 7, 2019
Throughout 2018, we unveiled the most pressing population health questions across our membership. Some topics signified interest in newer trends, such as addressing the social determinants of health or reducing behavioral health care stigma. However, we're still getting questions about foundational topics in care management and population health. Here are a couple of responses we shared with your peers on optimizing care transitions and annual well visits.
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by Paul Trigonoplos, Vidal Seegobin, and Darby Sullivan January 31, 2019
Editor's note: This is part of a series about care transformation around the globe, where we look at successful population health managers outside the United States. In this post, we highlight how organizations across Europe and Canada are popularizing the concept of social prescribing. A version of this post previously ran on The Forum.
By now, population health leaders have a good understanding of how to address the major social determinants of health—such as housing, food, and transportation. However, provider leaders and frontline staff, like community health workers, know that patients have some non-clinical needs that can't be met by traditional social service agencies. How can population health departments address patients' less-tangible non-clinical challenges, like social integration and self-fulfillment, which still significantly affect patients' lives?
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Petra Esseling January 29, 2019
Editor's note: This content was first published on Managed Care.
Behavioral health needs are highly prevalent, comorbid with other chronic conditions, and associated with increased clinical care and cost. The 20% of Medicaid patients with behavioral health problems account for 46% of total Medicaid spending on health services. Spending on behavioral health services in total is projected to reach almost $240 billion by 2020, up from about $150 billion in 2009.
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by Darby Sullivan and Tomi Ogundimu January 10, 2019
Each week, our health care experts share their insights from the field to help you stay on top of the latest trends and exciting innovations. Check out our most popular Care Transformation Center blog posts from 2018 below—and don't forget to
subscribe to our email alerts to stay up to date.
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by Gillian Michaelson, Rachel Hollander, and Rebecca Tyrrell January 8, 2019
Opioids can be an effective treatment to reduce pain associated with labor and delivery, especially for the more than 2.5 million women who give birth vaginally each year. However, in light of the nationwide opioid crisis and the role that overprescribing has played in the proliferation of opioid abuse and addiction, hospital and health system leaders are expanding their efforts to rein in unwarranted opioid utilization.
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by Petra Esseling, Paul Trigonoplos, and Vidal Seegobin January 3, 2019
This is part of a series about care transformation around the globe, where we look at successful population health managers outside the United States. In this post, we highlight how the Leeds County Council in the UK is responding to the loneliness epidemic.
This summer we published a blog on loneliness; it had more clicks than any other blog we’ve written this year. Loneliness continues to be in the spotlight because of its serious health implications—it raises the risk of death by over 25%.
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by Clare Wirth, Petra Esseling, and Tomi Ogundimu December 20, 2018
Substance use disorder (SUD) is a public health crisis with enormous cost. There were over 63,000 overdose deaths in 2016, and addiction costs from health care, criminal justice, and productivity loss amount to $700 billion annually. Despite these costs and the fact that SUD treatment is an essential health benefit under the Affordable Care Act, only one-in-five patients with SUD receives any form of treatment.
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