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Perspective
Almost every hospital in the nation is now required to conduct community health needs assessments. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) mandates that not-for-profit hospitals conduct a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) every three years and adopt an implementation strategy to address identified needs. While the law mandates the action, there are even more important reasons for hospitals to assess the health needs of the communities they serve. To be able to pursue any population health strategies, hospitals will need to have an accurate understanding of the health status of their markets.
Need
To determine the health needs of their communities, hospitals need to be able to accurately assess the current health status of the residents in their markets. The health status of the population served drives the volume of health services ultimately consumed by the same public. To be able to use healthcare resources in the most appropriate and cost-effective manner, the organization must be able to answer several key questions.
How large is the population of our market area? What are the age and demographic characteristics of the current and future population that will have an impact on healthcare resource utilization?
What are the current trends in the vital statistics of the market area? Do we have higher-than-average morbidity or mortality rates overall or for any specific disease entities?
What environmental or sociological factors are impacting the health of our communities?
If we were able to improve the health status of our communities, what would be the impact on the utilization of our healthcare resources and on our financial performance?
If we intentionally reduce the utilization of our healthcare resources, what strategies could we pursue to help optimize utilization?
ASR Planning can help organizations answer these and many related questions.
Idea
Our CHNA process uses a multi-dimensional model for evaluating the health status of specific communities. We can assist hospitals in identifying morbidity and mortality trends for their markets. Based on population health modeling assumptions, we can project future volumes of diagnostic and treatment services being used by both inpatients and outpatients. Our model has been used in ambulatory, acute and post-acute care settings.
Quantitatively, we review available, community-level statistics for both births and deaths. We will also evaluate the behavioral risk factors of the community that contribute to health status.
Qualitatively, we conduct community leader interviews and surveys of the entire community or at-risk populations to determine their perceptions of the health status of the population and the health-related issues that they perceive as priorities to be addressed.
We will then work with your leadership team to generate a CHNA and a set of prioritized implementation strategies intended to help improve the health status of the community.
Benefits
The key benefits associated with our approach include:
A CHNA that will fulfill the requirements of the ACA mandate for not-for-profit hospitals.
An understanding of the current health status of the communities served by the organization.
A set of action-oriented strategies that are intended to address and improve the future health status of the communities.
An understanding of the anticipated impact on healthcare resources of the preceding strategies and how the organization can best optimize these resources.
Solution
Our team of seasoned healthcare consultants has generated CHNAs in communities across the nation, from urban neighborhoods to rural counties. We conduct ongoing research to remain current with vital statistic and behavioral risk factor trends and best-in-class strategies for improving population health. Our multi-disciplinary process takes advantage of consultants with the depth and breadth of experience to accomplish the task.
Contact:
Douglas Rich, FAAHC, FACHE
Managing Director
Phone: 773.929.4400
doug.rich@asrplanning.com
Office Location:
3023 North Clark Street, Suite 317
Chicago, IL 60657
