Welcome to the first blog post for Health Care That Matters, a website dedicated to recognizing and discussing efforts at improving individual and population health and wellness. The idea of Health Care That Matters was born out of research I have been conducting for my book with the same title. I stumbled across stories of people doing amazing things to help move the dial on population health. The Health Care That Matters website, at www.healthcarethatmatters.com, provides links to some of those stories. I invite you to share similar efforts that are happening in your community. It is my belief that we should celebrate those people who are devoting their time and talents to help make a difference in a person’s health. This usually requires large investments of unpaid time, as our current health care system is not set up to reward for good health care outcomes (although there is movement in that direction – a subject of a future blog post). Health Care That Matters may help accelerate the system in the direction of paying for value by showcasing what is possible by a few dedicated people.
A recent article by Consumer Reports, http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine/2014/11/it-is-time-to-get-mad-about-the-outrageous-cost-of-health-care/index.htm, tries to ignite a flame in health care consumers by exhibiting three outrageous practices common in the health industry. Those practices are just the tip of the iceberg. I believe that raising consumer and provider awareness of how our current health system is structured and how it could be improved through more of the initiatives highlighted on Health Care That Matters is the key to creating a health system worth bragging about.
