The term “population health” has been a buzzword in the health IT lexicon for the past few years. Driven largely by the healthcare industry’s transition from a volumes based model to value-based delivery, population health plays a key role in emphasizing the accountability of outcomes. The concept of population health was originally defined as “the health outcome of a group of individuals, including the distribution of such outcomes within the group” by David Kindig and Greg Stoddart in 2013. While this definition focuses strictly on the measurements of health outcomes, it fails to acknowledge the role of healthcare providers in population health management. So what does population health truly mean? Depending on who you ask, the answers will vary drastically. To further explore the various viewpoints of the definition, the online MHA program surveyed 37 healthcare executives and asked them to define what the term “population health” means. Out of the 37 participants in the survey, only 2 people directly cited Kingdig and Stoddard’s original definition. While interpretation and understanding of the phrase “population health” differed greatly in the responses, many executives view it as an opportunity for health care systems, agencies and organizations to work together in order to improve the health outcomes of the communities they serve. The following is their responses: Wayne Brackin Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President, Baptist Health South Florida
“My definition is practical. You need to define the population and decide what it is you’re going to manage and what doctors are needed. To be more specific, let me give you an example. A partnership was created with Florida International University College of Medicine and Baptist Health South Florida/South Miami Hospital to care for 100 disadvantaged families in a defined neighborhood adjacent to the hospital. It is a defined population, there are identifiable needs that can be measured and a combination of providers from the medical school and the hospital will manage the families. That is a working definition of population health management.”
Paul Brashnyk, MPH
Interim Director of Clinic Operations, UW Neighborhood Clinics
“Population health is taking responsibility for managing the overall health of a defined population and being accountable for the health outcomes of that defined population.”
Fred L. Brown, LFACHE
Chairman, Fred L. Brown & Associates, LLC
“Population health is improving the health of a defined population.”
Brian Churchill
Director of Clinical Content and Decision Support, PeaceHealth
“The goal of population health is to improve the quality of care and outcomes while managing costs for a defined group of people. The defined group of people and the health management interventions can be identified by demographic differences, health needs such as chronic diseases or disabilities, or the health needs of the underserved.”
Todd M. Cohen
Director, AtSite Inc.
“Population health signals a change in the way health care is accessed, provided and utilized — a move away from reactive responses to an individual’s health needs. The concept marks a fundamental shift towards outcomes-based, proactive approaches to a given population with attention directed toward larger, socially grouped needs and prevention efforts while reducing disparity and variation in care delivery.”
Dr. Kenneth Cohn
CEO, Healthcare Collaboration
“To me, population health involves the health of the community; it implies wellness promotion as well as the treatment of new and chronic illnesses throughout the care continuum. It also implies improving the health of people previously undermanaged, such as the poor in terms of conditions such as diabetes, hypertension and cancer.”
