Healthcare’s Role in Community Outreach During COVID-19

Organizations like VIP StarNetwork try to create programs offering tailored messaging not just for compliance, but also to get the right information into the hands of healthcare workers across the board. They’re also looking at avenues to address the growing shortage in healthcare.

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From Crisis to Opportunity: Partnering to Address SDOH, Health Disparities

Creshelle Nash, MD, MPH, CHIE, medical director for health equity and public programs at Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield recently spoke with HealthLeaders about how she saw these disparities first-hand, and how the COVID-19 crisis has given the national healthcare system a vehicle to address social determinants of health (SDOH) and health disparities.

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Supporting the At-Home Care Team

By 2030, all baby boomers will be age 65 or older, increasing the already strong need for elderly care. In a 2020 report, Caregiving in the U.S., AARP and the National Alliance for Caregiving identified that nearly one in five people (19%) are providing unpaid care to an adult with health or functional needs. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, when staying at home meant reducing risk of infection, the value of at-home caregivers became even more evident.

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Nurses Key to Achieving Health Equity Over Next Decade

By 2022, all state and federal policy changes in response to the COVID-19 pandemic that expanded scope of practice should be made permanent, along with telehealth eligibility, insurance coverage, and equal payment for services provided by nurses, says The Future of Nursing 2020–2030: Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity.

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How to Run an Emergency Department Social Medicine Team

The EDSM team at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center was detailed recently in an article published by the Journal of the American Medical Association. The EDSM team at the hospital includes a patient navigator, social workers, care coordination nurses, a pharmacist, physician consultants, and specialists in transitional care, substance use, and quality improvement.

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How to Build a Comprehensive Social Determinants of Health Initiative

SDOH factors such as food security and housing play a pivotal role in the health of individuals and populations. A landmark 2016 study published by the American Journal of Preventive Medicine found that socioeconomic factors, health behaviors, and the physical environment account for determining more than 80% of health outcomes, with clinical care accounting for only 16% of health outcomes.

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