start<\/strong> in social services and thus decrease or even avoid much of high cost health care because their needs are already met.\u00a0 She even went so far as to re-brand her social workers who do in-home case management as \u201csocial practitioners\u201d so that their status in the health care team would be more easily identifiable.<\/p>\nWhen they looked at the cost comparison, their social service programs cost $13\/day on average whereas comparable health care costs are $4900\/day.\u00a0 For example, reliable, planned transportation to dialysis is infinitely more affordable than dialysis during a hospital stay.\u00a0 Rather than being an add on, this AAA would like for us to think of them as the entry point for the health care continuum, helping vulnerable patients achieve outcomes that meet their values and don\u2019t break the bank.<\/p>\n
What if we streamlined our points of entry so that we meet individual\u2019s needs before their environment makes them sick?\u00a0 What if health care and social services were integrated so that health really could start (and stay) at home? What if the least expensive intervention really could be the best one?<\/p>\n
The world of What If<\/strong> is exactly where I would love all of us to find ourselves every day.\u00a0 What a powerful way to imagine the impossible and then make it possible.<\/p>\nWatch the full FIX18 talk below!<\/em><\/p>\n