Inside Health Care #65: Dr. Rachel Harrington on Health Equity and “What’s Measured…Matters.”
October 20, 2021 · David J. Smolar
Why do the issues of Health Equity persist? If agencies and NGOs have spent years identifying gaps in care for minority groups in the U.S., what needs to be done to solve these issues, once and for all?
Enter NCQA Research Scientist Dr. Rachel Harrington. In the paper titled “An Equity Agenda for the Field of Health Care Quality Improvement,” published in mid-September 2021 by the National Academy of Medicine, Dr. Harrington, along with NCQA President Peggy O’Kane and other Health Care leaders, discuss the origins and continuing factors that seem to perpetuate gaps in Health Equity in the U.S.
In this episode’s chat with NCQA Director of Communications Matt Brock, Dr. Harrington gives honest answers to these questions. From outdated social norms to institutional racism, from inaccurate social determinants of health to patient distrust of the overall health care system, Dr. Harrington examines these issues while focusing on progress being made and the road ahead.
We also hear a conversation between NCQA President Peggy O’Kane and Vice President for Public Policy and External Relations Frank Micciche on the immediate need for improvements in health disparities and the progress being made to bridge these gaps.
