A 38-year tradition at Phoenix Children’s Hospital, Pediatric Update continues to provide an opportunity to explore the current state of pediatric medicine, while addressing both the successes and the challenges that are facing patients and physicians.
Outside of the American Academy of Pediatrics conferences, Pediatric Update is the largest gathering for physicians from across the country to learn the latest evidence-based practices in pediatric care. From emergency medicine to safety and quality, allergy and immunology, neurosciences and obesity, Pediatric Update explored the ever-changing dynamics of infant through young adult health care. The vision of Pediatric Update is to provide the best educational experience and timely pediatric information and practices for health professionals.
What does pediatric medicine look like in 2015? The succinct answer is that the industry has made great strides in improving the health and welfare of our nation’s children, but as always in health care, more needs to be done.
Significant changes are altering the health care landscape including the Affordable Care Act, narrow provider networks, cost-value balancing and accountable care organizations. In this context, pediatric- specific content is often lost amidst the broader conversations, which focus on the expansive adult populations and how to best approach and achieve health care: quality, cost efficiencies and successful outcomes.
While this approach is tempting, it lacks the critical insight that pediatric medicine substantively impacts health care trends overall. This is precisely the reason for Pediatric Update, and the talented panel of medical professionals who assembled this year to bring pediatrics into sharper focus for the nearly 400 providers who attended.
A tangible and serious example of this dynamic is the cross-over that is occurring between youth and adult populations in the area of obesity. This epidemic has resulted in more than one-third of American adults with obesity and obesity-related conditions including heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and certain types of cancer.
What's more startling is that more than one third of children and adolescents are overweight or obese. These youth are susceptible to the same health issues as they move into adulthood. This is a national crisis and one that healthcare professionals across the country should take very seriously.
At Phoenix Children’s, we believe this is a dilemma that deserves extensive attention, which is why we again dedicated our efforts to bringing the most pertinent and critical information to practitioners. As part of Pediatric Update, the Childhood Obesity Symposium provided a better understanding of the complex causes of weight gain, maintenance and weight loss.
If the obesity epidemic can be attacked at the pediatric level, the learnings can pave the way for children to enter adulthood with the tools to understand the importance of a healthy diet and regular exercise. What’s more, this educational effort assists the medical profession with the knowledge and understanding of how to improve patient management and care.
Obesity is just one example of the way in which pediatric medicine is shaping the broader discussions on health care overall. Pediatric Update showcased the ongoing commitment of the pediatric medicine community to the development and discussion of health care quality, value, service and efficiency, and its impacts on practitioners and patients. Education and improvement are at the core of our mission at Pediatric Update, and even more so is a powerful means to engage proactively with solutions to challenges ahead in the health care sphere.
Robert L. Meyer serves as president and CEO for Phoenix Children’s Hospital. Meyer joined the Hospital in 2003, taking over the leadership of current operations and future growth for Phoenix Children’s Hospital, Phoenix Children’s Medical Group and the Phoenix Children’s Hospital Foundation.
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