Public Health, Population Health, Population Health Management, and Describing a Role for Data Analytics: Ideas for Health System Administrators

Gregory Fant*

Public Health, Population Health, Population Health Management, and Describing a Role for Data Analytics: Ideas for Health System Administrators.

As the cost of medical care continues to increase in many developed countries (e.g., United States), as well as in some developing nations, with no or little improvement in population level health indicators (e.g., infant mortality), the limits to curative, clinical medicine becomes apparent. As a result, public health leaders and health system administrators turn to consider the roles that disease prevention and health promotion might play for improving population-level health status.
The difference between clinical medicine and public health is not surprising

The science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life, and promoting health through organized efforts of society. The programs, services, and institutions involved emphasize the prevention of disease and the health needs of the population as a whole. Public health activities change with changing technology and social values, but the goals remain the same: to reduce the amount of disease, premature death and disease-produced discomfort and disability in the population.

Upon reflection, we recognize that a population health management system must include, at least, three data-based tasks: gathering data from multiple sources into a usable format (e.g., establishing a data infrastructure); applying analytic techniques (e.g., trend analysis, reporting metrics, and developing work lists); and utilizing analytic products (e.g., work lists) to manage the care of a
population. However, the translation of data into meaningful information for health system planning and administration is tempered by data complexity, data variety, data quality, and data heterogeneity.

Public Health Open J. 2020; 5(1): 8-10. doi: 10.17140/PHOJ-5-138

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