Reimagining Ambulatory Care as a Key to Population Health.

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Population Health Strategies
• Healthcare System Redesign

Background:

• Traditional outpatient care historically served as a financial driver for hospitals through patient referrals.
• The healthcare landscape is shifting towards value-based care, where providers are incentivized to keep populations healthy.
• This paradigm shift necessitates a reevaluation of the role and function of ambulatory care services.

Purpose of the Study:

• To highlight the critical role of reimagined ambulatory care in achieving superior population health outcomes.
• To explain the strategic organizational redesign undertaken by Intermountain Healthcare to prioritize this new model of ambulatory care.
• To address the financial sustainability of healthcare providers in a system that emphasizes preventative ambulatory care.

Main Methods:

• Organizational redesign focused on prioritizing and enhancing ambulatory care services.
• Development and implementation of new products and initiatives to support the redesigned ambulatory care model.
• Strategic shift from a fee-for-service model to a population health management approach.

Main Results:

• Intermountain Healthcare has fundamentally restructured its organization around a reimagined ambulatory care model.
• New initiatives are being rolled out to operationalize this strategic redesign.
• The redesigned system aims to proactively manage population health and reduce the need for costly interventions.

Conclusions:

• Reimagined ambulatory care, focused on proactive health management, is crucial for advancing population health.
• Organizational redesign is essential to effectively implement and prioritize this new model of care.
• This strategic shift supports healthcare providers by focusing on preventative measures and long-term population wellness.