creating adaptable communities summary from empowering adaptable communities summit

CREATING ADAPTABLE COMMUNITIES: A SUMMARY OF PROCEEDINGS FROM THE 2ND ANNUAL ATLANTIC CENTER FOR POPULATION HEALTH SCIENCES EMPOWERING ADAPTABLE COMMUNITIES SUMMIT

Rachel S. Permuth, PhD, MSPH, National Research Director, SodexoJennifer M. Petrelli, SM, MPH, Nutritional Epidemiologist, Sodexo

Creating adaptable communities is no easy feat, especially in the face of

change and adversity. Sodexo was honored to be a featured presenter at

the 2nd Annual Atlantic Center for Population Health Sciences Empowering Adaptable Communities Summit. The Summit was held on October 21 and 22, 2015, in Morristown, New Jersey, at the College of Saint Elizabeth. The

event was devoted to providing new insights, information, inspiration, and

personal connections in our united efforts to empower communities to be

more adaptable.

Population Health is transforming how we view community health and creating a fundamentally

different culture and perspective focused on wellness. The population health approach maintains that

achieving a healthy community requires more than just treating sickness on an individual level.

Over the course of this symposium, we heard from community health thought leaders and leading

practice organizations, whose presentations focused on developing innovative solutions to pressing

population health problems. From the information that was shared, we have identified three important

themes that will become more and more important as we seek to enable healthy populations:

1. Patient Fear as a Central Part of the Patient Experience

2. New Perspectives on Caregiving and Taking Care of the Caregivers

3. The Key Role of Community Connections and Healthy Neighborhoods

2 Creating Adaptable Communities Proprietary and Confidential

PatientFearasaCentralPartofthePatientExperience

In healthcare, medical advances alone cannot guarantee better patient outcomes. Helping patients

heal or overcome illness involves more than just treatment through medical procedures and products;

patients mental well-being and peace-of-mind can be just as important.

In fact, understanding and alleviating fear is central to improving the patient experience.

This assertion is based on the fact that as humans, we have core needs, and fear occurs when one of

these needs is not being met.

Fear in the hospital setting is amplified and much more complex. Top patient fears include infection and

germs, incompetence, and death. Fear among patients typically revolves around two aspects: a loss of

control and depersonalization.

However, every patient experiences fear differently (see Figure 1). It is therefore vital for healthcare

organizations to look toward enhancing patient experience in the hospital setting through initiatives

targeted at these different manifestations of fear. Staff awareness, patient involvement, and social

support are essential for overcoming patient fear and are key areas for improvement.

Loners Worriers

Self-Centrics Attention- Seekers

FEAR OF THE INSTITUTION

DEFLECT FEAR

INN

ER F

OC

US R

EAC

H O

UT

TACKLE FEAR

Vitality

Recognition

Conviviality

Security

Listen to me Bond with me Singularize my stay

Respect my loneliness

Follow my plan Regain my balance

Figure 1. Sodexos PersonixTM Visualization of Different Manifestations of Patient Fear

Proprietary and Confidential Creating Adaptable Communities 3

NewPerspectivesonCaregivingandTakingCareoftheCaregivers

Focusing on patients, especially the fear they may cope with as part of their experience, may not be

enough to bring about a healthy population. Increasingly, attention is being paid to the enormous

contribution that caregivers make within our healthcare system, and the loneliness and isolation they face

in light of such an overwhelming task.

Consequently, there is an urgent need to develop new perspectives on caregiving.

We could all be caregivers at the drop of a hat, yet we have never had any training to prepare us for

this role. Our lives can become very complex as a result. It is estimated that there are 44 million unpaid

caregivers in the U.S., typically consisting of a patchwork of family, extended family, and friends. These

individuals often have little financial or social relief and may experience poor health as a result of their

caregiving.

Several factors have contributed to the increased pressures facing caregivers:

Women are an increasingly large proportion of the out-of-home working population.

Living arrangements are changing multi-generational households are becoming rare, while single-person households are growing.

Family members may be able to meet their charges daily needs, but they may struggle with seeking support from local organizations for practicalities such as mobility.

Given these challenges, how can we better support caregivers? Can technology help? What services

are out there to give relief to caregivers? How do we make sure caregivers know the resources that are

available to help them? It is essential that tomorrows healthcare leaders consider these questions and

work toward alleviating some of the stresses of caregiving.


TheKeyRoleofCommunityConnectionsandHealthyNeighborhoods

Maintaining the health of an entire population requires not just that individual patients are retroactively

treated and cured, but also that illness is proactively prevented on a larger scale. This means moving

beyond the hospital and patients homes, and into the larger community. In fact, research has shown that

the physical and social environments are very strong determinants of health.

With this in mind, community connections and the formation of healthy neighborhoods are the next population health levers.

The focus on the role of the community is especially important, given the greater risk and responsibility

being pushed onto the health system. Expenditures on health care (as a percent of GDP) remain high

while expenditures on social services are low. Regardless of the approach utilized, population health

initiatives must be data-driven and evidence-based. The evolution of community-oriented population

health via the integration of community and clinical initiatives is the key to improved outcomes and ROI.

An example initiative that utilizes community connections to drive population health, Sodexos

Communities for Health pilot, is described in Figure 2.


Conclusion

The Empowering Adaptable Communities Summit focused on several key themes pertaining to improving

the well-being of communities. Achieving this goal requires a population health approach that emphasizes

prevention over treatment. It requires understanding the patient experience and working toward alleviating

patient fears. It requires supporting the caregivers who treat and assist sick or elderly individuals. And it

requires recognizing the growing role of community connections and healthy neighborhoods as a means to

enhance population health. Each of these three topics deserves further discussion and consideration from

community health leaders and other health professionals.

Figure 2. The Sodexo/YMCA of Central Florida Communities for Health Pilot


AdditionalResources

To learn more about the Empowering Adaptable Communities Summit,

the Atlantic Center for Population Health Sciences, or the three themes

identified, the following resources may be of interest.

EmpoweringAdaptableCommunitiesSummiteventwebsite:http://www.cvent.com/events/empowering-

adaptable-communities-2015-summit/event-summary-6c1d296e96694b37b46255c68b5600ef.aspx

TheAtlanticCenterforPopulationHealthScienceswebsite: http://www.atlantichealth.org/atlantic/

health+education/population+health/atlantic+center+for+population+health+sciences/

SodexoWhitePapers:

Understanding and Managing Patient Fear in the Hospital Setting http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/0351c0e8#/0351c0e8/1

Social Interaction, Loneliness and Quality of Life in Healthcare and Older Adults Care http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/30a55063#/30a55063/1

Communities for Health Launch Event: Summary of Proceedings http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/dc43c72e#/dc43c72e/1

AdditionalwhitepaperscanbefoundonSodexosThoughtLeadershipLibrary:

bit.ly/sodexothoughtleadership


As part of Sodexos commitment to creating a better tomorrow through sustainable, green initiatives, this document has been printed on paper containing 20% post-consumer recycled content.

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