The Opportunity
Research shows that healthcare services contribute less than 10 percent to health outcomes while other factors, such as health behaviors and social and environmental factors—often referred to as social determinants of health (SDOH)—are quite influential. Increasingly, healthcare providers and professionals recognize the need to address upstream social inequities, such as education, employment, or living conditions, which adversely affect health. Many clinicians lack specific knowledge, tools, and strategies to address these factors, which generally are not part of medical training and education. The NQP Leadership Consortium, which guides the work of NQP, also identified the integration of SDOH to improve health outcomes as a 2018 national priority for action.
Objectives
The NQP Social Determinants of Health Data Integration Action Team is committed to accelerating the integration of data on social determinants of health (SDOH) into clinical practice. The NQP Social Determinants of Health Data Integration Action Team addressed current challenges in integrating social and environmental risk data in clinical practice by identifying real world exemplars and successful approaches to integrating SDOH data to support both providers and communities in their efforts to eliminate disparities. Considerations for integrating social data into electronic health records, understanding the impact of addressing non-medical risk factors, and capturing data in a way that is actionable will be highly informative to a wide range of stakeholders.
NQF Process
National Quality Forum (NQF) convened a multi-stakeholder NQP Action Team for NQF member organizations to engage, share, and learn from one another on a topic of national importance. Through a series of web meetings and one in-person forum, the NQP Social Determinants of Health Data Integration Action Team developed and shared priorities, goals, and promising practices to inspire action in others. The NQP Action Team began its work in December 2018 and convened over an 8-month time period. The NQP Action Team culminated in a capstone public webinar in Summer 2019.
NQP Action Teams are limited to National Quality Forum member organizations in good standing. Composition of NQP Action Teams emphasizes a balance of public and private stakeholder representation and diverse perspectives, as well as content expertise and/or leadership in Social Determinants of Health Data Integration.
Additional Information
NQF gratefully acknowledges support from the Aetna Foundation, American Psychiatric Association, and WellCare Health Plans, Inc., towards the NQP work on social determinants of health data integration.
Contact Information
For more information, please contact nationalqualitypartners@qualityforum.org.