Changing Population Health Policy: A Model for Identifying Health Needs and Recommendations to Improve Health Status

In the spring of 2014, the North Dakota Center for Rural Health (CRH) was tasked with completing an objective assessment of the state oral health environment. This included an assessment of oral health status, review of workforce needs, evaluation of current oral health programs, and policy recommendations to ameliorate identified oral health needs. The report was prepared for the North Dakota Legislative Health Services Interim Committee. This article highlights a research method developed and employed to identify current population health status and policy recommendations through statewide collaboration, transparent process, and objective analyses, regardless of the health specialty of focus. Evidenced-based decision making in health policy requires more than presentation of data. It requires input from the population or community utilizing or struggling to gain access to the given health service. It is now understood that health services researchers must employ a variety of research methods, include end users in the research process, tailor presentation of the findings for the appropriate audience, and include the population of study in the research, allowing them to provide recommended solutions when possible. Although the effort to be described focused specifically on oral health in North Dakota, the methodologies used to answer the research questions could, and are encouraged to, be employed in other states with regard to other specialty health disciplines and population health studies. The study sought to answer 3 questions: (1) What is the population health need?; (2) What is already being done?; and (3) What are the recommendations to improve population health? (Population Health Management 2016;19:216-223).