Study of Kansas Health Needs

• Access to health care = 125 Total Responses *
  • General = 32
  • Under/uninsured = 26
  • Dental = 22
  • Cost of health care = 21
  • Prescription drugs = 10
  • Rural access = 5
  • Transportation = 3
  • Vision = 3
  • Mental health = 1
  • OB GYN = 1
  • Immunizations = 1

• Healthy Communities, Health Prevention = 53 Total Responses
  • General = 21
  • Obesity/Diabetes/Nutrition = 15
  • Parish nursing = 4
  • Teen pregnancy = 4
  • Gang violence = 4
  • Drugs and alcohol = 3
  • Tobacco = 2

• Aging = 40 Total Responses
  • Improve services = 19
    • Nursing homes
    • Assisted living
    • Home care
    • End of life
  • Increasing number of aged persons = 16
  • Work force = 3
    • Compensation of workers
    • Remove stigma of working with elders

• Health Care Work Force = 32 Total Responses
  • General = 8
  • Hospitals and physician recruitment = 6
  • Physician training = 5
  • Work force training = 5
  • Rural = 5
  • Specialists = 3
• Reinvent the Health Care Delivery System/Quality of Care = 18 Total Responses
• Mental Health = 17 Total Responses
• Unemployment/Economy = 10 Total Responses
• Health Care for Minority Persons = 6 Total Responses
• Chronic Disease/Care Coordination = 6 Total Responses
• Child Care = 6 Total Responses
  • Safety in Centers and Homes = 1
  • Culture fit = 1
  • Quality = 2
  • Foster Care = 2
• Youth Development = 6 Total Responses
• Environment = 4 Total Responses
• Lack of State Health Agenda/Plan = 4 Total Responses
• Public Health = 4 Total Responses
  • Infrastructure
  • Funding
• Under Used and Incomplete Health Data in State = 3 Total Responses
• Cancer = 3 Total Responses

• Downward Trends
  • Economy
  • Government funding
  • Corporate profits
  • Foundation investments
  • Health providers (selected areas)
• Upward Trends
  • Human service needs
  • Health care costs
  • Demands for accountability of nonprofit organizations
  • Fund raising efforts (results mixed)
• Effects of Trends on Nonprofit Organizations
  • Increased need for business skills
  • Increased need for organizational effectiveness and efficiency
  • Increased need for effective boards of directors
  • Doing more with less
  • Decreased or stretched service capacity
  • Service needs up
  • Insurance access of all kinds down

Analysis and Interpretation

Needs:

Access to Health Care

A bad problem concerning access to health care is going to get worse

• Contributing factors:
  • Weak national economic picture, unemployment, underemployment.
  • Large shortfall in State revenue.
  • Federal government war expenditures diverting money from domestic concerns.
  • Governments at all levels re-directing resources to domestic security.
  • Philanthropic resources are stretched. Greater competition for philanthropic dollars.
  • Mal-distribution, inadequate numbers, and graying of the health care work force are contributing to access problem.
  • Low participation in government programs due to stigma, socio-economic, racial, and culture gaps between patients and providers, administrative demands and low reimbursement rates make access to health care providers difficult even when people qualify.
  • Growing costs of health care, health insurance, and decreased ability to obtain private insurance at any price.
  • State government policies for coping with shortfall are reported to be: to eliminate some health and human services, adopt tougher standards for people to qualify for programs and raise fees to participants. Further, cuts are being sought for services in which the impact will be delayed. Outreach for HealthWave is going into a passive mode. Capping of expenditures in health programs with Federal matching funds is likely.
• Likely outcomes of these combined factors are:
  • Swelling numbers of people will not qualify to receive government supported services and who cannot afford insurance or private payment of those services. Thus, growing numbers of people will be without access to health care.
  • High costs of or inability to qualify for private health insurance are also contributing to decreasing ability to access health care.
  • Safety net health and basic human needs providers are unable to meet service needs.
  • People turning to hospital emergency rooms for treatment of non-emergency health needs or deferring care until there is an emergency. This drives overall costs of health care up, results in unnecessary suffering and worsening of health conditions and may interfere with responses to true emergencies.

Statewide Health Planning and Health Data

Lack of a statewide comprehensive health plan and health data is undermining development of informed policy, adequate funding and an effective and efficient service delivery system.

• Contributing Factors
  • Funding is inadequate to allow the Health Care Data Governing Board to fulfill its mission.
  • Data for health is currently thought to be piecemeal, not integrated, not easy to use, and has gaps. It is being kept in various State agencies and is created for varied purposes.
  • Kansas has no current health agenda or plan.
  • There is no central voice for health in State agencies or to advocate for consumers.
• Effects of these combined factors
  • Lack of coordination, cohesion, and fragmented decision making on health.
  • Lack of data to support planning.
  • Lack of clarity about who should lead planning for the State.
  • Need for funds to support planning.
  • Political will to support planning.
  • Potentially lower allocations for health care.
  • Failed system of health care access.
  • Higher costs of care due to inefficient care system.
  • Human suffering.

Oral Health

Build in the momentum and expand the oral health initiative

• Considerable momentum has been achieved for placing oral health on the radar screen as a health issue in Kansas.
• The "tip of the iceberg" has been addressed so far in understanding and meeting the oral health needs.
• Bridges have been built between oral health professionals.
• Children are the current focus, huge and serious unmet need for adults has built up.
• Continued and broadened support is needed.

Healthy Communities, Preventive Health

Win the battle for healthy Kansans through Church and community initiatives.

• Churches in several communities in Kansas have established health community and congregation initiatives.
• United Methodists and related United Methodist institutions regularly have access to large numbers of Kansans and can influence healthy lifestyles through programs.
• Interdenominational efforts are working in some communities and may be replicable.
• Continued support through funds and technical assistance can achieve a higher impact.