Identifying and tackling social determinants of health (SDOH) are crucial aspects of any health equity strategy. But establishing how best to capture patients’ SDOH needs and develop interventions in the clinical setting remains a significant challenge for many healthcare organizations. The United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) defines SDOH as “the conditions in the…
Published in Circulation: Heart Failure, a recent study conducted by Northwestern Medicine researchers found that adding social determinants of health (SDOH) data into machine learning models led to less bias when predicting outcomes for heart failure patients. Healthcare bias can lead to detrimental outcomes for patients. For example, in April, a study published in PLOS digital health found that digital health…
Many researchers working on health technology assessments (HTAs) are keen to address disparities in health care. But the COVID-19 pandemic and recent prominence of the Black Lives Matter movement have cast a bright spotlight on structural racism in the US and elsewhere, showing that addressing health disparities after they are established is both too late and…
Welcome to the “Lessons from the C-suite” series, featuring Advisory Board President Eric Larsen’s conversations with the most influential leaders in health care. In this edition, Dr. Steve Klasko, CEO of Jefferson Health, talks with Eric about revelations in a Barnes & Noble, navigating “principled” growth, and how he approaches health care through an “old…
A cancer care delivery model that specifically accounts for social determinants of health not only improved overall cancer survival rates, but closed racial health disparities in cancer care outcomes, researchers reported at the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) annual meeting. Particularly, the healthcare delivery model—which included protocol to flag and address social determinants of health—improved cancer…
Decades in the making, the transition to value-based care may soon be complete. In June, Liz Fowler, the new deputy administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and director of its Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation (CMMI), suggested that CMS may soon require providers to be reimbursed based on patient outcomes. This…
Educational attainment is one of the key social determinants of health influencing health disparities, with individuals without a high school education facing the greatest barriers to wellness, according to the inaugural America’s Health Rankings Health Disparities Report from United Health Foundation. Particularly, the report found stark health disparities in mental and behavioral health among those…
Nearly every chronic health condition has an increased prevalence with declining income; in fact, the life expectancy of the wealthiest American is ten to fifteen years longer than that of the poorest. Health disparities negatively affect people who experience larger obstacles to achieving optimal health due to lack of access to care. Healthcare systems face…
“Low-value care” has been defined as care in which the potential for harm far outweighs possible benefits. When one has the opportunity to consider the phrase in conjunction with its definition, it evokes the notion that patients, their clinicians, and care team are discussing several dimensions of care, weighing the “pros” and “cons,” and arriving…
Social determinants of health were strongly associated with whether or not an individual with heart disease adopted measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19, according to a study that draws attention to health disparities. The study, presented at the American College of Cardiology’s 70th Annual Scientific Session, is based on a survey that examined COVID-19…