The Path Forward: The Role of Hospitals and Health Systems in Advancing Health and Well-Being for Individuals and Communities
This chapter starts by explaining a current trend in the transformation of the role of hospitals in advancing health in the community. The change is the result of demographic change and disease burden shifts which are moving away from acute to chronic. And hospitals and health systems are, as a result, leading an unprecedented transformation to re-envision their role and extend their impact beyond the clinic walls. They are working to create new models of care that prioritize teaming and partnership with the aim of engaging in true population health: advancing health and well-being by bridging care and community. The key, the chapter argues, is to promote affordability while enhancing value. The chapter concludes by stating that hospitals and health systems play an important role in the health of communities across the United States. While that role is changing and will likely continue to evolve, the importance of these institutions as anchors in their communities is likely to increase in coming years.