More and more, hospitals are reporting a strong or total commitment to improving population health, a goal that requires infrastructure and resources. In most hospitals, population health efforts fall under the umbrella of executive management, according to a recent nationwide survey.
The survey was conducted by the Health Research & Educational Trust, the Association for Community Health Improvement and the Public Health Institute from January to May of this year. It includes the responses of more than 1,400 hospitals and health systems.
Here are three things to know about how hospitals are structuring the leadership and staff of their population health programs.
1. The job positions that most often oversee population health are executive management (53 percent), senior management (27.1 percent), middle management (11.3 percent), program directors/managers (3.8 percent) and program staff (1.8 percent). Roughly 3 percent of the hospitals said their program is run by "other."
2. The number of full-time equivalents dedicated to population health varies depending on hospital size. Nearly two-thirds (63.2 percent) of small hospitals with fewer than 100 beds have between zero and 1.99 population health FTEs. Medium hospitals (between 100 and 299 beds) usually have between zero and 1.99 (32.4 percent) or 2 to 5.9 (29 percent) FTEs. Nearly half (45.3 percent) of large hospitals (300 or more beds) have 10 or more FTEs dedicated to population health.
3. According to the survey results, hospitals and health systems with population health programs are looking for the following skills and backgrounds most: Physicians, nurses, behavioral health experts, needs assessment and strategic planning experts, and clinicians (not physicians or nurses).
To see the full summary of survey findings, click here.
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