How to integrate MT IHC data into your Community Health Needs Assessment process
Hospitals and health systems are doing more and more outside their own walls to improve the health of their communities. In addition to providing life-saving care, hospitals are finding ways to connect patients to healthy food, invest in affordable housing, or identify creative solutions to transport patients to and from their medical appointments.
Why are hospitals doing so much beyond their main priority of providing medical care? Many reasons.
Their mission. Most health care organizations are guided by a mission to improve health and wellness. Well-established research shows that the majority of factors that affect our health are outside the health care system. These “social drivers of health,” or the circumstances in which we live, work, play, and worship, have an even greater influence on our overall health than access to medical care. If we don’t influence these external factors, we won’t make progress on improving overall health.
It’s a smart investment. As more health care systems operate in value-based care arrangements, investing in proactive measures that can help manage chronic disease and reduce hospitalizations can help reduce costs and improve patient outcomes. Addressing SDOH proactively is a crucial strategy to help to prevent costly disease and injuries.
CMS and others are requiring action. Recognizing the value of addressing SDOH, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and many other payers and accreditors are requiring hospitals to screen for and address SDOH. In 2024 CMS began requiring hospitals to attest to activities they have in place to advance health equity. In 2025 hospitals, will be required to submit SDOH screening data.
Despite all these reasons to begin addressing SDOH, it can be difficult for hospitals to know where to begin. With so many potential factors—from housing to food insecurity to social isolation and beyond—how can a hospital know how and where to prioritize their efforts?
The Montana Index for Healthy Communities (MT IHC), a new health and social needs index, can help answer that question.
The MT IHC can help your hospital gain a better understanding of what needs exist in your community and where they are most prevalent. The index includes data for 6 health care domains and 8 socio-economic domains:
Health Care Domains
Disease prevalence
Disease prevention
Health behaviors
Provider supply
Treated prevalence
Health insurance
Socio-economic Domains
Internet connectivity
Education
Employment
Food access
Household structure
Housing & transportation
Income & poverty
Historically marginalized populations
The index has scores for each domain and each zip code within your hospital’s service area. This information shows, at a glance, the highest types of need and the geographic areas where need is greatest.
How can I use the information? The MT IHC data can add new insight to existing efforts or help make the case for new program. Here are a few ideas for how to use the information:
Include MT IHC data in your next Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) process. These data complement the information you will collect through surveys, interviews, and focus groups. You can also use the IHC data to identify areas you might want to learn more about through your interviews or focus groups. Learn how Logan Health Cut Bank used the IHC as part of their CHNA process.
Bring the data to a community meeting. Hospitals cannot and should not try to address SDOH alone. Many other organizations and individuals are likely already working on these challenges. The IHC can be a rich data source to inform that work, be used in grant applications, or shed new light on how to design solutions.
Bring the data to your hospital board meeting. Sharing data with your board can help guide conversations about where the hospital can invest, partner, or advocate for new resources to address community needs.
To learn more about the IHC check out the user guide.
To request a copy of your hospital’s data, email Chloe Williams (chloe.williams@mtha.org)