Speaker
Phillip D. Levy, MD, MPH
Professor of Emergency Medicine and Physiology
Associate Vice President for Population Health and Translational Science
Director, Wayne Mobile Health Unit Program
Wayne State University
Keywords
Population Health; Heart Disease; Cardiovascular Health; Social Determinants of Health; Preventative Care
Key Points
- Heart disease remains the leading cause of death in the US. Projections through 2050 suggest these rates will continue to rise, particularly among adults aged 45 to 64. Age-adjusted heart disease mortality is particularly high in Detroit, with residents in certain census tracts dying 5 to 15 years younger than the Michigan state average.
- During the COVID-19 pandemic, the research team ran a fleet of 8 mobile units in Detroit focused on testing and vaccination in the communities that were being hit the hardest. This infrastructure put them in a position to address untreated chronic conditions that were putting the Black population there at higher risk, and their vision expanded from pandemic response to portable population health.
- They used the Population Health OutcomEs aNd Information eXchange (PHOENIX) to aggregate clinical and social determinant data, geocode risk, and target specific neighborhoods for outreach based on high self-reported rates of hypertension and diabetes.
- Active projects include ACHIEVE GREATER, an NIH-funded research center aiming to reduce cardiometabolic health disparities in Black populations through 4 sub-projects, and MOTION, CDC-supported mobile outreach seeking to improve cardiovascular health-related risk factors at the targeted census tract level. ACHIEVE GREATER is currently randomizing participants for its heart failure intervention, while MOTION is delivering a personalized and adaptable lifestyle support intervention via community health workers and pharmacists.
Discussion Themes
The researchers work with over 250 established community partners, including churches and local businesses, and return to locations repeatedly to maintain trust and care continuity.
To ensure the program’s financial viability, the researchers have collaborated with payers to close gaps in quality metrics and establish bundled rates and per-member-per-month pricing for community-based screenings.
Dr. Levy’s background as an emergency physician informed this work; he was disillusioned by the short-term fixes they delivered for the consequences of failed prevention, especially among young patient populations.