Ally Hunter, Virtual Care Consultant; and Denise White-Perkins, MD, PhD, Interim Chair, Department of Family Medicine; and Director, Healthcare Equity Initiatives, Office of System Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Henry Ford Health 

The digital divide continues to exacerbate healthcare inequities. Low levels of digital literacy, lack of broadband access, and inadequate equipment can prevent patients, especially those 65 years or older, from the benefits of utilizing virtual care. Learn about Henry Ford Health’s approach to catalyzing equity in telehealth.

Upon completion of this session, participants should be able to:

• Identify main barriers for older adults utilizing telehealth.
• Discuss current initiatives to improve equity in telehealth.
• Identify effective telehealth equity strategies to implement in their home institution.

Antonia Carbone, PharmD, BCACP, Clinical Professor of Pharmacy Practice, FDU School of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, and Ambulatory Care Clinical Pharmacist, Family Medicine Residency at Overlook, Atlantic Health System

Engaging vulnerable patient populations can improve health, decrease costs, and ensure healthcare equity. The Diabetes Health Partnership at Atlantic Health System uses a team-based population health model to reduce disparities in care for vulnerable populations by addressing medical and social challenges through diabetes education, social service, community health workers, and pharmacy support.

Upon completion of this session, participants should be able to:

• Define and address social determinants of health.
• Describe the role of community health workers in improving health equity.
• Summarize strategies to engage patients in care.
• Delineate key members of a multidisciplinary diabetes care team.

Jeff Mohl, PhD, Director, Research and Analytics, AMGA 

Many patients fail to achieve desired blood pressure (BP) targets despite the use of multiple anti-hypertensive medications. This session will explore a large retrospective database study that demonstrates the scope of this problem, including disparities among vulnerable patient populations, as well as several potential focus areas for improvement. 

Upon completion of this session, participants should be able to:

• Describe the magnitude of the care gap in controlling hypertension despite medication prescribing.
• Identify disparities in treatment and outcomes across patient and provider characteristics.
• Explain the impact of both medication non-adherence among patients and therapeutic inertia among providers on BP control.

Diane L. Howard, Operations Administrator, Language Services and Concierge Services, Office of Practice Specialty Collaborations and Contracts; and Daniel Tschida-Reuter, Operations Manager, Language Services, Mayo Clinic

Healthcare disparity with diverse patients is a growing concern. Per 2019 census, over 66 million people do not speak English in the home. This presentation will address solutions to leverage finite staffing resources, technology, change management, and vendor strategy to provide best-in-class patient care for a growing diverse patient population.

Upon completion of this session, participants should be able to:

• Describe the current healthcare disparity gap and growing need for closing the gap.
• Implement innovative ways to maximize interpreting staff resources to provide quality care for diverse patients.
• Describe how technology can be leveraged in maximizing staff and vendor resources.
• Leverage change management strategies to ensure staff engagement to optimize the implementation of a three-pronged model for closing the healthcare disparity gap.

Elizabeth Ciemins, PhD, MPH, MA, Senior Vice President, Research and Analytics, AMGA; and Kathy Jo Carstarphen, MD, MPH, Senior Physician and Lead Physician, MedVantage Clinic; Associate Professor, University of Queensland, Ochsner Clinical School; and Internist, Ochsner Health 

A deliberate, focused effort is necessary to close gaps and the accompanying disparities in early evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment for people with lower-extremity peripheral artery disease (PAD). This presentation will describe three models that can be emulated to improve care for this high-risk population.

Upon completion of this session, participants should be able to:

• Describe the under- and delayed diagnosis of PAD and its impact on patients.
• Explain how minority groups are disproportionately affected by under- and delayed diagnosis of PAD.
• Delineate why health systems have historically failed to diagnosis PAD early.
• Appropriately illustrate existing solutions and describe the specific interventions that have been successful in improving management of people with PAD.

Octavia Solomon, PharmD, Pharmacy Specialist, Detroit Northwest Medical Center; and Roberta Eis, RN, BSN, MBA, Project Manager, Department of Family Medicine, Henry Ford Health

The Express Blood Pressure Program is a multidisciplinary, data-driven, team-based intervention utilizing PDSA cycles to improve blood pressure (BP) control in African American men. This presentation will address the inclusion of multidisciplinary roles to support patients in addressing BP control and screening for social determinants of health (SDOH) impacting BP management.

Upon completion of this session, participants should be able to:

• Describe the impact of healthcare disparities on patient well-being and outcomes.
• Describe how maximizing the role of various disciplines supports clinical and social needs for improving BP control.
• Describe the importance of screening for SDOH.
• Utilize PDSA cycles of improvement to develop and refine the model for addressing care needs of at-risk populations.
• Delineate the benefits of a community partnership in promoting ongoing support for the identified population.

Georgia McGlynn, RN, MSN-CNL, CPHQ, Manager, Office of Population Health and Accountable Care; and Reshma Gupta, MD, MSHPM, Chief of Population Health and Accountable Care, UC Davis Health

This presentation will provide participants with a framework to help them make a business case for prioritizing health equity at their local institutions. UC Davis Health will highlight their approach to promote equity and help participants identify where to begin.

Upon completion of this session, participants should be able to:

• Determine their organization’s current stage in the health equity journey (beginner, intermediate, or advanced).
• Describe two components of UC Davis Health’s framework for prioritizing health equity.
• Demonstrate one way in which the framework could be applied at their organization in order to promote health equity.