Advancing health equity with systems approach

In a recent guest column published in Modern Healthcare, Leigh Caswell and Liz Lacouture describe systemwide efforts underway at Presbyterian Healthcare Services to improve perinatal health outcomes for patients and members.

“Improving health equity means confronting the systemic, avoidable and unjust outcomes our patients and health plan members may experience,” they write in the column. “It is meaningful and exciting, yet daunting, work.

Across Presbyterian Healthcare Services and at Presbyterian Health Plan, we have long had the desire to tackle health inequities. But, like health systems nationwide, we struggled with how to scale initiatives and strengthen infrastructure. Fortunately, after years of work to build a strong foundation, the pieces are in place to make a difference.”

With data that provides a more complete picture of the barriers that patients and members face, Presbyterian has embarked on a perinatal health equity initiative that extends across the system, with a particular focus on pregnant patients in rural and frontier communities in New Mexico. These efforts include integrating community health workers and peer support specialists into OB/GYN and pediatric care teams, enhancing virtual offerings and offering free health equity trainings.

“In a state where Native American, Hispanic/Latina and African American women have higher rates of infant and maternal morbidity, we all have a tremendous responsibility and opportunity to improve health equity across the population,” say Caswell and Lacouture.