The National Association of Urban Hospitals often points to the socio-economic status of the patients its members serve as constituting one of the greatest challenges private safety-net hospitals face. That challenge typically takes two major forms: how to serve such patients more effectively and how to encourage public officials to shape government (Medicare and Medicaid) reimbursement policies that reflect this distinct challenge and treat such caregivers fairly.
Now, the National Academy of Medicine has taken a closer look at the social determinants that play such a major role in community health and in the health of the residents of the communities private safety-net hospitals serve.
In its new report An Environmental Scan of Recent Initiatives Incorporating Social Determinants in Public Health, NAM reviews such initiatives in six categories:
- community-generated initiatives to foster community health
- data and metrics initiatives to support measurement of community health
- tool kits to promote multi-sector efforts to promote health
- campaigns intended to inspire broad multi-sector approaches to health
- federal initiatives promoting a broad vision for fostering community
- philanthropic initiatives supporting and motivating multi-sector collaboration to improve health
Find the report here.
