Carrot Health, Colorado Hospital Association Analysis Identifies “Distinct Correlation” Between SDoH and Emergency Department Utilization, Hospital Readmissions

Findings are part of a case study examining the relationship between SDoH and healthcare utilization in Colorado

MINNEAPOLIS – November 23, 2020 – A groundbreaking analysis by Carrot Health of claims data compiled by the Colorado Hospital Association (CHA) determined that a high Carrot Social Risk Grouper® (SRG) score correlates strongly with higher rates of emergency department (ED) super-utilization. The analysis, which combined data from CHA’s On Demand Hospital Information Network (ODHIN) with consumer behavior data from the Carrot MarketView® platform, also found that food insecurity and other underlying social factors were driving ED utilization and readmissions.

Using de-identified ODHIN data on 2.5 million adult patients in Colorado and Carrot Health data encompassing nearly 5.2 million of the state’s adult residents, analysts scored patient risk based on Carrot Health’s proprietary Carrot SRG® taxonomy for measuring and monitoring social determinants of health (SDoH). Carrot SRG scores range from 0 (low) to 99 (high) based on behavioral, social, economic and environmental components including 11 social risk categories: loneliness, housing instability, health literacy, food insecurity, financial insecurity, discord at home, unemployed, uninsured, low socioeconomic status, transportation needs, and unacculturated.

The CHA-Carrot Health partnership also enabled CHA to build an interactive dashboard to help member hospitals gain a better understanding of their specific patient population by identifying those who have been readmitted within 30 days and determining which SDoH contributed to their overall risk. By visualizing and highlighting the relationship between readmissions and SDoH, appropriate guidance can be provided to member hospitals seeking improvement in their quality efforts.

“By partnering with Carrot Health, CHA is providing its members with data to support programs that can reduce ED utilization and readmissions, thereby reducing the total cost of care for everyone,” said Tom Rennell, Senior Vice President, Financial Policy, for CHA, which represents more than 100 member hospitals and health systems throughout Colorado. “Further, with the dashboard, we are giving hospitals the capability to identify an area of focus and allocate appropriate resources to address social risk factors within their own communities. By acknowledging that each hospital and community is unique, our members are empowered to create individualized interventions.” 

Among the analysis’ key findings was a correlation between high risk for various SRG components and observed ED super-utilization. For example, individuals in the top decile of risk for food insecurity super-utilized the ED at nearly 2.9 times the rate of the general population. Those at highest risk for housing instability super-utilized nearly 2.8 times as often, while financial insecurity led to a super-utilization rate nearly 2.7 times higher.

Carrot Health, a leading provider of healthcare solutions powered by consumer data, developed the Carrot SRG to help predict the likelihood of an individual having an adverse health outcome due to SDoH. Scores, which are available for every individual in the U.S., are based on consumer data, primary surveys, research, and Carrot Health’s proprietary consumer and health database. Specific SRG inputs include consumer data variables, ICD-10 Z-codes, independent survey results, peer-reviewed studies, healthcare claims, clinical information, and other proprietary data. Survey results are based on representative samples of consumers across age, gender, insurance type, and socioeconomic status to identify perception of SDoH risks.

“SRG scoring allows healthcare organizations to understand the unique fingerprint of risk and potential barriers to appropriate care that prevent people from leading their healthiest lives,” said Kurt Waltenbaugh, CEO of Carrot Health. “When this fingerprint is applied to an individual and a community, it can help identify the highest opportunity for intervention and which efforts will produce the greatest return on investment. Assessing the risk of a community before investing in a one-size-fits-all intervention can help justify the right investment and the potential savings opportunity.”

Download the case study, Mapping the Correlation Between Emergency Department Utilization and SDoH, here.

About Colorado Hospital Association

Colorado Hospital Association (CHA) is the leading voice of Colorado’s hospital and health system community. Representing more than 100 member hospitals and health systems throughout the state, CHA serves as a trusted, credible and reliable resource on health issues, hospital data and trends for its members, media, policymakers and the general public. Through CHA, Colorado’s hospitals and health systems work together in their shared commitment to improve health and health care in Colorado.

About Carrot Health
Carrot Health believes in enabling a future with no barriers to better health, for everyone. We believe that shining the bright light of data onto our disparities will help us, all working together, to improve health. We provide consumer insights for each and every individual person in the United States to engage patients and members, close gaps in care, and optimize performance for healthcare payers and provider systems. The Carrot MarketView® software platform incorporates social, behavioral, environmental, and economic barriers to health data to deliver a 360-degree view of the consumer, providing actionable insights to inform Growth, Health, and Quality.

###