SDOH alliance picks digital platform to connect medical, social services

A Utah initiative, funded by Intermountain Healthcare and the first in the state aimed at addressing social determinants of health, is leveraging software to link clinical and social service providers.

The Utah Alliance for the Determinants of Health has selected the Unite Us digital platform to serve as a coordinated care network designed to improve visibility around vulnerable people in the state.

“Unite Us is proud to partner with the Alliance to further their mission of improving health equity and building a healthier Utah,” says Taylor Justice, president of Unite Us. “Intermountain Healthcare has positioned themselves as a leader in social determinants of health innovation and has committed to creating a path forward for others to follow.”

The Unite Us software provides a data tracking tool that proactively manages non-medical factors impacting peoples’ health—such as food insecurity, housing instability, interpersonal violence and transportation—before they come to a clinic or a hospital.

Partners within the Alliance, including local mental health authorities, federally qualified health centers and social service organizations, will deliver care as part of an integrated and accountable network with the ability to:

• Electronically connect individuals to clinical and social service providers.

• Screen individuals for unmet needs.

• Track progress and receive automated feedback from partners to ensure care and services are received.

• Collaborate with community-wide care teams that will ensure providers are on the same page regarding the shared progress of the people they serve.

• Collect data, including structured outcomes, to measure the network’s impact, including time to service and effectiveness of care.

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Initially, the Alliance will launch two demonstration pilots—one in Washington County in southern Utah and the other in Weber County in northern Utah, both for SelectHealth Medicaid-eligible residents—before expanding across the state. Services will be available to qualifying persons without regard to their choice of healthcare provider.

The Alliance, led by Intermountain, seeks to achieve healthier communities, lower healthcare costs and be a model for other areas of the country to replicate.

“Working with community partners to go upstream to support well-being is one of the most effective things Intermountain Healthcare can do to fulfill our mission to help people live the healthiest lives possible,” says Mikelle Moore, Intermountain’s senior vice president of community health.