Intersection of complexity and high utilization among health center patients aged 18 to 64 years

Existing literature indicates that multimorbidity, mental health (MH) conditions, substance use disorders (SUDs), and social determinants of health are hallmarks of high-need, high-cost patients. Health Resources and Services Administration-funded health centers (HCs) provide care to nearly 30 million patients, but data on their patients' complexity and utilization patterns are limited. We identified subgroups of HC patients based on latent concepts of complexity and utilization.

We used cross-sectional national data from the 2014 Health Center Patient Survey and latent class analyses to identify distinct and homogenous groups of complex high-utilizing patients aged 18 to 64 years.

We included indicators of chronic conditions (CCs), MH, SUD risk, and health behavior to measure complexity. We used number of outpatient and emergency department visits in the past year to measure utilization.

HC patients were separated in 9 distinct groups based on 3 complexity latent classes (MH, multiple CCs, and low risk) and 3 utilization classes (low, high, and superutilizers). Conditions associated with each subgroup differed. The highest prevalence of bipolar disorder (45%) and high SUD risk (6%) was observed among MH superutilizers, whereas the highest prevalence of cardiovascular disease (48%) and obesity (96%) was seen among CC superutilizers. Most MH superutilizer patients concurrently had MH conditions and obesity and were smokers, but most CC superutilizer patients concurrently had hypertension, obesity, and cardiovascular disease.

Our examination of complexity and utilization indicated distinct HC patient populations. Managing the care of each group may require different targeted intervention approaches such as multidisciplinary care teams that include MH providers or specialists.