Health IT

Proof: Remote Behavioral Change Interventions Can Be Successful

There’s a simple truth in health care that most hold to be self-evident – that […]

There’s a simple truth in health care that most hold to be self-evident – that helping patients be happier and live better can indeed improve overall health. This in turn holds the promise of reducing the burden of rising health care costs in the United States. But innovative solutions that focus on sustainable improvements in health and well-being in a way that simply and successfully engages patients have been sorely needed. One challenge is that our healthcare system has been largely focused on disease with not enough focus on health. What we have traditionally failed to do successfully is truly help individuals identify the obstacles they face in making meaningful changes in their lives and then actually help them overcome those barriers.

Until now, the proof that this is indeed possible has been limited. But as a result of a successful collaboration between Aetna and AbilTo, we now have that capability and the real proof to suggest it truly works.

Take the example of a high-risk medical condition such as heart disease. According to the American Heart Association, heart disease affects more than 85 million Americans today and remains a leading cause of hospitalizations and death in the US. Additionally, the total cost of care for patients with heart disease is greater than $300 billion each year including the cost of health care but also the cost due to lost productivity. We also know that in the aftermath of a cardiac event more than 1 in every 4 patients suffers from major clinical depression, and many more likely with milder forms of behavioral health concerns or lack the resiliency or coping skills to face the challenges imposed by their new medical reality. When under-recognized and under-treated, it is well recognized that these challenges interfere with successful recovery and increase the chance of repeat hospitalizations, poorer clinical outcomes, and avoidable healthcare costs.

Together, AbilTo and Aetna have shown that successful engagement in a behavior change intervention done remotely by phone or secure video improves emotional well-being and substantially reduces the chance of recurrent hospitalizations, days spent in the hospital, and total cost of care. We know that addressing behavioral health is a necessary prerequisite to improving overall health. And what Aetna and AbilTo have shown is that we are indeed capable of delivering these types of programs on a national scale. That means we can touch people and improve enough lives in a way that will make a real positive financial impact for the system.

The promise is happier, healthier, and more productive individuals. The added benefit is a tremendous financial impact for the healthcare system more broadly. Now that is something we should all aspire to. And Aetna and AbilTo have done just that.

You can read the study in its entirety at www.ajmc.com or by clicking AJMC- Study 

Reena Pande, MD

As Chief Medical Officer of AbilTo, Dr. Pande serves as a passionate voice for the need to bridge the gaps between medical health and behavioral health. She also spearheads AbilTo’s data analytics and outcomes research. In addition to her work at AbilTo, Dr. Pande is a practicing cardiologist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, MA and Instructor at Harvard Medical School.

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