Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation
Annual Report Fiscal Year 2013–2014
10
Health of Vulnerable Populations
Care For Those In Need.
Advantages For All.
One of the Foundation’s long-standing
priorities has been to ensure that North
Carolinians get the high-quality medical
care they need, when they need it, in a local
and culturally competent environment.
Having a qualified workforce to serve
people close to home is a critical part of
the equation. Concerns about prestige,
lifestyle and compensation have resulted
in a shift in medical career paths, with many
medical students choosing specialty fields
over primary care. This trend has resulted
in primary care workforce shortfalls
and unequal distribution of physicians,
impacting rural parts of the state and
populations that were already vulnerable.
Several current Foundation
investments address the pipeline for
primary care physicians training and
working in diverse, low-income, rural areas.
In our evolving health care system, primary
care physicians increasingly need to
understand patients within the contexts
of their lifestyles and environments,
because these factors directly affect health.
Traditional training programs should evolve
in order to give providers the skills to
coordinate care among disciplines ranging
from pharmacy to dental. The Teaching
Health Center is one model that begins to
bridge this gap.
Supporting the state’s first
Teaching Health Center in a community-
based environment is a central part
of the Foundation’s broader strategy
to improve overall health in low-income
and underserved populations. We are
excited about the progress we’ve made,
and we’re inspired by the possibilities
for the future.
PREVENTIVE CARE FOR THE COMMUNITY AS A WHOLE.
We are all familiar with improving patients’ health within the clinic
setting. But how do health care providers improve the health of
patients before they arrive at the health care professional’s door—
and after they leave? That’s the focus of the Community-Centered
Health Home (CCHH) model developed by Prevention Institute (PI).
The Foundation is working with PI to implement the CCHH model
in North Carolina. The model encourages primary care providers,
especially those in the safety net, to take an active role in advocating
for environmental and policy changes that support healthy behaviors.
Putting this plan into action will entail developing a set of practices
and measures at the local level to influence community factors that
contribute to good health. Though still in infancy, the project is off
to a promising start. PI, on behalf of the Foundation, conducted a
landscape analysis to assess feasibility of the model in North Carolina.
The results were shared with health care and prevention experts
across the state. The response to the concept of a CCHH pilot was
overwhelmingly positive. A core team is assisting the Foundation
in developing a strategy to support North Carolina communities
in implementing the CCHH framework. The Foundation plans on
launching the CCHH initiative in fall 2014.
To learn more about Community-Centered Health Homes, visit
.
BY 2030,
NC WILL NEED
MORE
PRIMARY CARE
PHYSICIANS TO
TO SERVE
AN
AGING
AND GROWING
POPULATION
31
%
9
IN 2012,
NC HAD
PRIMARY CARE
PHYS I C I ANS
7.6
PER
10
,
000
P E O P L E
8
