1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:02,080 Hello everyone. This is Jacob Emerson with the 2 00:00:02,080 --> 00:00:04,799 Becker's Pay Your Issues Podcast. Thrilled today to 3 00:00:04,799 --> 00:00:07,359 be joined by a very special guest. Doctor. 4 00:00:07,359 --> 00:00:09,759 Crystal Clark is the Chief Medical Officer for 5 00:00:09,759 --> 00:00:12,580 the Community Health Choices Program at UPMC 6 00:00:12,880 --> 00:00:15,355 Health Plan. Doctor Clark, thank you so much 7 00:00:15,355 --> 00:00:16,795 for taking the time to be with me 8 00:00:16,795 --> 00:00:17,934 on the podcast today. 9 00:00:18,394 --> 00:00:20,315 Oh, thank you, Jacob. I'm happy to be 10 00:00:20,315 --> 00:00:20,815 here. 11 00:00:21,594 --> 00:00:23,595 So doctor Clark, tell us a little bit 12 00:00:23,595 --> 00:00:26,414 about yourself. What's your background in terms of, 13 00:00:26,795 --> 00:00:29,109 your career background in health care, and what 14 00:00:29,109 --> 00:00:31,449 it is that you're doing today at UPMC? 15 00:00:33,670 --> 00:00:36,950 Sure. I I'm a internal medicine physician by 16 00:00:36,950 --> 00:00:37,450 training, 17 00:00:37,909 --> 00:00:38,890 and I've been 18 00:00:39,270 --> 00:00:42,789 a physician executive. So leadership roles in health 19 00:00:42,789 --> 00:00:44,649 plans and hospital systems 20 00:00:45,405 --> 00:00:48,204 and in some government agencies for the last 21 00:00:48,204 --> 00:00:50,844 15 years, but I started off as a 22 00:00:50,844 --> 00:00:53,484 internal medicine physician taking care of adults in 23 00:00:53,484 --> 00:00:55,265 the community and in the hospital, 24 00:00:55,965 --> 00:00:57,504 mostly in urban settings 25 00:00:58,260 --> 00:01:01,939 and transitioned into more executive roles after I 26 00:01:01,939 --> 00:01:04,659 realized that while I enjoy taking care of 27 00:01:04,659 --> 00:01:05,159 patients, 28 00:01:05,620 --> 00:01:08,099 I was really interested in the things that 29 00:01:08,099 --> 00:01:08,599 drive, 30 00:01:09,700 --> 00:01:10,200 healthy 31 00:01:10,659 --> 00:01:11,780 outcomes, and, 32 00:01:12,180 --> 00:01:13,079 chronic disease 33 00:01:13,534 --> 00:01:15,454 was one of the issues that really kept 34 00:01:15,454 --> 00:01:17,055 me up at night. How do we improve 35 00:01:17,055 --> 00:01:18,275 that? How do we decrease 36 00:01:18,814 --> 00:01:20,734 the rates of chronic disease in so many 37 00:01:20,734 --> 00:01:23,715 of our patients and and Americans? And so 38 00:01:24,174 --> 00:01:27,215 I transitioned into more leadership roles, more training 39 00:01:27,215 --> 00:01:27,954 and quality, 40 00:01:28,590 --> 00:01:29,729 information technology, 41 00:01:31,069 --> 00:01:31,890 health equity, 42 00:01:32,269 --> 00:01:32,769 and, 43 00:01:34,269 --> 00:01:36,049 transitioned then to UPMC, 44 00:01:37,069 --> 00:01:39,549 in a role for a specific type of 45 00:01:39,549 --> 00:01:40,689 insurance program 46 00:01:41,149 --> 00:01:42,689 called Community Health Choices, 47 00:01:43,575 --> 00:01:45,114 which doesn't just provide 48 00:01:45,494 --> 00:01:48,555 traditional health insurance for medical things like appointments 49 00:01:49,415 --> 00:01:51,814 and prescriptions and things like that. We also 50 00:01:51,814 --> 00:01:54,875 provide for a good portion of this particular 51 00:01:55,015 --> 00:01:56,155 contingent of Pennsylvanians. 52 00:01:57,049 --> 00:02:00,010 We also provide in home support, so personal 53 00:02:00,010 --> 00:02:00,510 attendants, 54 00:02:01,290 --> 00:02:04,569 medically tailored meals, transportation, things of that nature, 55 00:02:04,569 --> 00:02:05,069 because 56 00:02:05,770 --> 00:02:07,549 we realize that some, 57 00:02:08,169 --> 00:02:09,069 folks need 58 00:02:09,530 --> 00:02:12,590 social supports as well as traditional medicine 59 00:02:12,944 --> 00:02:14,784 to get well or or try and get 60 00:02:14,784 --> 00:02:16,405 to live their best life. So 61 00:02:17,025 --> 00:02:17,685 that is, 62 00:02:18,064 --> 00:02:19,365 the role I'm in now, 63 00:02:19,825 --> 00:02:20,564 with UPMC. 64 00:02:20,944 --> 00:02:21,444 It 65 00:02:21,745 --> 00:02:22,625 it actually is, 66 00:02:23,344 --> 00:02:25,199 I think, a perfect fit for me, 67 00:02:25,840 --> 00:02:26,739 from my journey 68 00:02:27,120 --> 00:02:29,599 in in trying to achieve equity for for 69 00:02:29,599 --> 00:02:30,340 all people. 70 00:02:30,959 --> 00:02:32,879 Absolutely. It sounds like it. And it really 71 00:02:32,879 --> 00:02:34,659 sounds like you're providing wraparound 72 00:02:35,039 --> 00:02:37,680 health care to to those populations that you 73 00:02:37,680 --> 00:02:38,180 serve. 74 00:02:39,104 --> 00:02:41,504 In that vein, Crystal, I wanna talk with 75 00:02:41,504 --> 00:02:44,144 you, about an issue that we hear about 76 00:02:44,144 --> 00:02:46,864 so often nowadays from health plans, from health 77 00:02:46,864 --> 00:02:47,364 systems, 78 00:02:47,905 --> 00:02:50,465 a social determinants that they are constantly looking 79 00:02:50,465 --> 00:02:53,099 for new ways to address, and that is 80 00:02:53,099 --> 00:02:54,159 food insecurity. 81 00:02:54,539 --> 00:02:56,639 I know this isn't an issue very familiar 82 00:02:56,699 --> 00:02:58,539 to you in terms of the work that 83 00:02:58,539 --> 00:02:59,520 you do. So 84 00:02:59,979 --> 00:03:02,379 let's level set for a second, and if 85 00:03:02,379 --> 00:03:04,319 you wouldn't mind explaining to our audience, 86 00:03:05,259 --> 00:03:07,854 what is food insecurity in terms of what 87 00:03:07,854 --> 00:03:09,794 does it look like on the ground, 88 00:03:10,334 --> 00:03:12,735 among the population that you serve, and and 89 00:03:12,735 --> 00:03:14,814 just how pervasive of an issue is it 90 00:03:14,814 --> 00:03:15,314 today? 91 00:03:16,334 --> 00:03:18,495 Well, it's a it's it's a really big 92 00:03:18,495 --> 00:03:21,134 issue, Jacob. Let me just first define it. 93 00:03:21,134 --> 00:03:21,634 So 94 00:03:22,310 --> 00:03:23,050 food insecurity 95 00:03:23,430 --> 00:03:26,469 is defined as the lack of consistent and 96 00:03:26,469 --> 00:03:26,969 dependable 97 00:03:27,270 --> 00:03:29,289 access to nutritious foods 98 00:03:29,909 --> 00:03:30,729 that are necessary 99 00:03:31,030 --> 00:03:32,810 to maintain optimal health. 100 00:03:33,349 --> 00:03:33,849 So 101 00:03:34,314 --> 00:03:36,094 consistent and dependable 102 00:03:36,555 --> 00:03:39,114 access to the foods you need to stay 103 00:03:39,114 --> 00:03:39,614 healthy. 104 00:03:40,155 --> 00:03:41,534 The term food insecurity 105 00:03:41,834 --> 00:03:42,334 is 106 00:03:42,794 --> 00:03:44,174 relatively new, 1995 107 00:03:44,555 --> 00:03:47,215 or so, started by the, USDA, 108 00:03:47,840 --> 00:03:49,840 but it it's been an issue for as 109 00:03:49,840 --> 00:03:51,139 long as we can remember. 110 00:03:51,759 --> 00:03:54,159 You know, you can remember hearing peep people 111 00:03:54,159 --> 00:03:54,979 talk about, 112 00:03:55,519 --> 00:03:58,000 chicken soup when you're sick or making sure 113 00:03:58,000 --> 00:04:00,340 that you eat well to help you recover. 114 00:04:00,745 --> 00:04:03,705 So we've we've known the relationship between good 115 00:04:03,705 --> 00:04:05,865 food and good health for quite some time, 116 00:04:05,865 --> 00:04:08,825 but the federal government got in the into 117 00:04:08,825 --> 00:04:11,145 this to really take us to the next 118 00:04:11,145 --> 00:04:11,645 level, 119 00:04:12,025 --> 00:04:12,925 define it, 120 00:04:13,224 --> 00:04:16,740 fund it, monitor it, pull together partnerships 121 00:04:17,439 --> 00:04:19,680 because it's become such a a big issue. 122 00:04:19,680 --> 00:04:21,759 So so let's talk about the size of 123 00:04:21,759 --> 00:04:22,259 it. 124 00:04:22,959 --> 00:04:25,220 About one out of every 8 125 00:04:25,600 --> 00:04:28,899 American adults experience some type of food insecurity. 126 00:04:29,474 --> 00:04:31,574 So at some point in their months, 127 00:04:32,194 --> 00:04:33,414 they either have, 128 00:04:34,034 --> 00:04:35,814 inadequate food or significantly 129 00:04:36,274 --> 00:04:38,935 inadequate food to last the entire month. 130 00:04:39,474 --> 00:04:41,254 And when we looked at this data 131 00:04:41,839 --> 00:04:44,639 in a survey done by the, Census Bureau, 132 00:04:44,639 --> 00:04:47,279 it was a specific household study done in 133 00:04:47,279 --> 00:04:47,779 2023, 134 00:04:48,879 --> 00:04:50,020 they found that, 135 00:04:50,800 --> 00:04:51,779 about 12% 136 00:04:52,400 --> 00:04:53,220 of Americans 137 00:04:54,000 --> 00:04:54,980 in this survey 138 00:04:55,634 --> 00:04:58,035 sometimes or often did not have enough to 139 00:04:58,035 --> 00:04:59,894 eat in the preceding week. 140 00:05:00,274 --> 00:05:01,735 So you say, well, 12%, 141 00:05:02,274 --> 00:05:04,294 that's not great, but that means 88% 142 00:05:04,595 --> 00:05:05,334 of Americans 143 00:05:06,034 --> 00:05:07,735 do. They do have enough food. 144 00:05:08,269 --> 00:05:11,810 Well, 12% in the US represents about 28,000,000 145 00:05:12,189 --> 00:05:12,689 people. 146 00:05:13,389 --> 00:05:15,709 So the percentage is small, but the impact 147 00:05:15,709 --> 00:05:16,449 is huge. 148 00:05:17,389 --> 00:05:20,350 So it's it's a really, really important issue. 149 00:05:20,350 --> 00:05:22,050 The last thing I would say, Jacob, 150 00:05:23,084 --> 00:05:24,625 is when we've looked at 151 00:05:25,084 --> 00:05:27,644 overall health and and I I think this 152 00:05:27,644 --> 00:05:29,264 is a really important point. 153 00:05:30,285 --> 00:05:32,925 Many times, we think a person's health is 154 00:05:32,925 --> 00:05:33,425 dependent 155 00:05:34,204 --> 00:05:37,024 on their access to high quality health care. 156 00:05:37,339 --> 00:05:39,500 And make no mistake. It is very important. 157 00:05:39,500 --> 00:05:41,040 At UPMC, we know 158 00:05:41,500 --> 00:05:43,680 that good medical care can make the difference. 159 00:05:43,900 --> 00:05:46,639 Our our our logo is life changing medicine. 160 00:05:47,500 --> 00:05:49,980 But the data also tells us when you 161 00:05:49,980 --> 00:05:52,720 look at a person's overall health and wellness, 162 00:05:53,435 --> 00:05:54,254 only 20% 163 00:05:55,354 --> 00:05:56,095 is determined 164 00:05:57,115 --> 00:06:00,074 by the access to good medical care. The 165 00:06:00,074 --> 00:06:00,974 other 80% 166 00:06:02,074 --> 00:06:03,294 is driven by 167 00:06:04,154 --> 00:06:07,879 their access to a health physical environment, their 168 00:06:07,879 --> 00:06:10,860 access to healthy food, their access to employment, 169 00:06:11,480 --> 00:06:13,560 their access to good education, what we call 170 00:06:13,560 --> 00:06:15,259 the social determinants of health. 171 00:06:15,720 --> 00:06:16,220 So 172 00:06:16,520 --> 00:06:19,240 if you are interested in life changing medicine 173 00:06:19,240 --> 00:06:20,379 like we are at UPMC, 174 00:06:21,334 --> 00:06:23,735 you have to continue to give, you know, 175 00:06:23,735 --> 00:06:26,214 world class care, which we do, which will 176 00:06:26,214 --> 00:06:29,334 be responsible for about 20% of our patients' 177 00:06:29,334 --> 00:06:31,574 overall health and wellness, but then you have 178 00:06:31,574 --> 00:06:33,194 to partner with other organizations 179 00:06:33,814 --> 00:06:35,514 to help address that other 80% 180 00:06:36,180 --> 00:06:38,019 that allows to drive the the rest of 181 00:06:38,019 --> 00:06:40,279 the goal home of of optimal health. 182 00:06:40,980 --> 00:06:43,220 Absolutely. And that's such a great way you've 183 00:06:43,220 --> 00:06:44,360 phrased that earlier, 184 00:06:44,740 --> 00:06:48,199 Crystal, in terms of 12% of Americans experiencing 185 00:06:48,500 --> 00:06:50,964 food insecurity or not having enough access to 186 00:06:50,964 --> 00:06:52,564 the food they need. But but to your 187 00:06:52,564 --> 00:06:55,285 point that that represents a very large amount 188 00:06:55,285 --> 00:06:56,264 of people, 28,000,000 189 00:06:56,725 --> 00:06:58,805 people. And and I assume a lot of 190 00:06:58,805 --> 00:07:00,904 those are in are in Pennsylvania as well. 191 00:07:01,285 --> 00:07:03,125 So so Crystal talk to us a little 192 00:07:03,125 --> 00:07:05,129 bit about, you know, we we've heard critics 193 00:07:05,290 --> 00:07:07,290 say to us before, it's not the role 194 00:07:07,290 --> 00:07:09,069 of health systems or health plans, 195 00:07:09,610 --> 00:07:12,170 to be addressing social determinants. That it's it's 196 00:07:12,170 --> 00:07:14,430 up to government policies or the private sector. 197 00:07:14,569 --> 00:07:16,170 So what would you how would you respond 198 00:07:16,170 --> 00:07:17,850 to that? Why is it such an important 199 00:07:17,850 --> 00:07:18,350 issue 200 00:07:18,730 --> 00:07:19,550 for UPMC 201 00:07:20,175 --> 00:07:22,995 specifically, to be addressing these social determinants? 202 00:07:24,415 --> 00:07:25,475 Well, I think it's 203 00:07:26,095 --> 00:07:28,654 you can come at this many different ways, 204 00:07:28,654 --> 00:07:29,154 Jacob. 205 00:07:29,615 --> 00:07:30,274 You know? 206 00:07:30,654 --> 00:07:32,675 I think that having access 207 00:07:32,990 --> 00:07:34,529 to the food that you need, 208 00:07:35,230 --> 00:07:37,149 to live a healthy life is a human 209 00:07:37,149 --> 00:07:37,649 right. 210 00:07:38,110 --> 00:07:38,850 In addition, 211 00:07:39,550 --> 00:07:41,949 we've looked at the the data. We look 212 00:07:42,110 --> 00:07:44,430 we we watch the televisions. We talk to 213 00:07:44,430 --> 00:07:44,930 people. 214 00:07:45,604 --> 00:07:47,704 When we don't help people achieve, 215 00:07:48,644 --> 00:07:49,144 optimal 216 00:07:49,764 --> 00:07:50,824 diet and 217 00:07:51,285 --> 00:07:53,524 feeling like they have what they need to 218 00:07:53,524 --> 00:07:56,985 be healthy, it manifests itself in other ways. 219 00:07:58,600 --> 00:08:00,779 So more chronic disease, for example, 220 00:08:01,160 --> 00:08:03,800 food insecurity, believe it or not, is tied 221 00:08:03,800 --> 00:08:06,459 to obesity. It is not the primary driver, 222 00:08:06,759 --> 00:08:09,160 but it is a factor. Because when you 223 00:08:09,160 --> 00:08:09,660 have 224 00:08:10,214 --> 00:08:12,694 small amounts of income and you're trying to 225 00:08:12,694 --> 00:08:15,094 preserve your ability to feed yourself and feed 226 00:08:15,094 --> 00:08:16,394 your family for months, 227 00:08:16,935 --> 00:08:19,974 you often pick low cost items that usually 228 00:08:19,974 --> 00:08:21,594 are not the healthiest calories. 229 00:08:22,214 --> 00:08:25,034 And so you tend to actually gain weight, 230 00:08:25,410 --> 00:08:26,470 unhealthy weight, 231 00:08:27,090 --> 00:08:28,550 because you're food insecure. 232 00:08:29,090 --> 00:08:31,490 We know that in children who don't have 233 00:08:31,490 --> 00:08:32,470 adequate nutrition, 234 00:08:32,929 --> 00:08:35,350 they can't concentrate in school, they're fatigued, 235 00:08:35,809 --> 00:08:36,790 so their educational 236 00:08:37,330 --> 00:08:38,629 progress is compromised. 237 00:08:39,444 --> 00:08:41,225 And we know that people who, 238 00:08:42,245 --> 00:08:43,304 are food insecure, 239 00:08:43,845 --> 00:08:47,044 you know, often can't maintain employment, again, because 240 00:08:47,044 --> 00:08:49,944 of fatigue and energy levels and concentration. 241 00:08:50,725 --> 00:08:51,225 So 242 00:08:52,009 --> 00:08:54,330 it's it it's the the evidence is out 243 00:08:54,330 --> 00:08:55,870 there that this is 244 00:08:56,409 --> 00:08:56,909 everybody's 245 00:08:57,529 --> 00:09:00,090 problem. And if we don't address it as 246 00:09:00,090 --> 00:09:01,309 a entire nation, 247 00:09:01,929 --> 00:09:04,090 we end up paying the price for it 248 00:09:04,090 --> 00:09:05,309 in some way or another. 249 00:09:06,534 --> 00:09:07,034 Absolutely. 250 00:09:07,335 --> 00:09:07,835 No. 251 00:09:08,375 --> 00:09:10,534 Amazing insights, Crystal, that this is just a 252 00:09:10,534 --> 00:09:12,794 trickle down effect if you do not address 253 00:09:12,934 --> 00:09:14,855 the root of the problem. And in that 254 00:09:14,855 --> 00:09:16,774 vein, what are some of the efforts that 255 00:09:16,774 --> 00:09:19,575 UPMC is doing to address the root of 256 00:09:19,575 --> 00:09:22,259 this issue, to to take on food insecurity 257 00:09:22,559 --> 00:09:23,700 in in your communities? 258 00:09:24,960 --> 00:09:25,620 So UPMC, 259 00:09:26,559 --> 00:09:27,299 has been 260 00:09:27,600 --> 00:09:30,399 in the food as, as medicine space for 261 00:09:30,399 --> 00:09:31,460 quite some time. 262 00:09:31,920 --> 00:09:33,700 We started years ago, 263 00:09:34,240 --> 00:09:35,059 with a 264 00:09:35,945 --> 00:09:37,725 prescription for wellness program 265 00:09:38,345 --> 00:09:41,304 where our primary care providers had the ability 266 00:09:41,304 --> 00:09:43,004 to actually write a prescription 267 00:09:44,024 --> 00:09:46,044 to patients saying exercise 268 00:09:46,345 --> 00:09:48,585 or eat healthy diet or use more fresh 269 00:09:48,585 --> 00:09:49,085 vegetables 270 00:09:49,865 --> 00:09:50,524 and fruits. 271 00:09:50,904 --> 00:09:52,820 And the literature has told 272 00:09:53,200 --> 00:09:55,519 us when that type of discussion comes from 273 00:09:55,519 --> 00:09:56,179 the physician, 274 00:09:56,720 --> 00:09:59,360 the uptake is better. So we have we've 275 00:09:59,360 --> 00:10:01,919 been doing programs like that for quite some 276 00:10:01,919 --> 00:10:03,299 time, but then in 2019, 277 00:10:04,845 --> 00:10:07,004 we launched something called the Center For Social 278 00:10:07,004 --> 00:10:07,504 Impact 279 00:10:07,964 --> 00:10:08,865 within UPMC, 280 00:10:09,245 --> 00:10:11,725 within our another center called the Center For 281 00:10:11,725 --> 00:10:13,024 High Value Health Care. 282 00:10:13,404 --> 00:10:15,105 And the point there was, 283 00:10:15,644 --> 00:10:17,565 why don't we find out and 284 00:10:18,044 --> 00:10:18,945 what it takes 285 00:10:19,549 --> 00:10:22,189 to do exactly what you asked me? How 286 00:10:22,189 --> 00:10:23,970 do we partner with organizations 287 00:10:24,829 --> 00:10:26,209 that serve our members 288 00:10:26,589 --> 00:10:27,329 with us 289 00:10:27,870 --> 00:10:30,370 and see if we pull together, can we 290 00:10:30,909 --> 00:10:33,309 really make a dent in some of these 291 00:10:33,309 --> 00:10:34,575 issues that are 292 00:10:35,215 --> 00:10:37,394 impacting our members. Because, again, 293 00:10:37,774 --> 00:10:39,774 we can give them world class medical care, 294 00:10:39,774 --> 00:10:42,434 but if we're not taking care of unemployment 295 00:10:42,894 --> 00:10:43,955 and food insecurity, 296 00:10:44,735 --> 00:10:46,514 those things will will overshadow 297 00:10:46,975 --> 00:10:47,715 and collapse 298 00:10:48,209 --> 00:10:50,289 all the good that we've done as far 299 00:10:50,289 --> 00:10:51,829 as helping folks access, 300 00:10:52,209 --> 00:10:53,189 good health care. 301 00:10:53,490 --> 00:10:54,709 We've tried to 302 00:10:55,169 --> 00:10:57,189 think about our our food 303 00:10:57,490 --> 00:10:59,509 program that we're thinking about, 304 00:11:00,129 --> 00:11:01,029 called Nourish 305 00:11:01,794 --> 00:11:03,415 in 3 major buckets, 306 00:11:04,195 --> 00:11:04,695 availability, 307 00:11:06,274 --> 00:11:06,774 accessibility, 308 00:11:07,634 --> 00:11:08,535 and adequacy. 309 00:11:09,154 --> 00:11:11,394 So let me just just talk about that 310 00:11:11,394 --> 00:11:12,215 for a minute. 311 00:11:12,674 --> 00:11:13,174 Availability. 312 00:11:13,634 --> 00:11:14,934 So the distribution 313 00:11:16,320 --> 00:11:17,059 and transportation 314 00:11:17,360 --> 00:11:19,940 of food. How do we make sure that, 315 00:11:20,639 --> 00:11:21,299 our members 316 00:11:21,679 --> 00:11:23,759 have the availability to get the food that 317 00:11:23,759 --> 00:11:24,740 they need? 318 00:11:25,440 --> 00:11:26,580 So accessibility. 319 00:11:26,960 --> 00:11:28,820 So reduce the cost burden 320 00:11:29,514 --> 00:11:31,914 and then adequacy that the food that they 321 00:11:31,914 --> 00:11:33,674 do have access to or we help them 322 00:11:33,674 --> 00:11:34,815 get access to 323 00:11:35,274 --> 00:11:37,995 is medically and culturally appropriate so they can 324 00:11:37,995 --> 00:11:38,495 actually 325 00:11:38,954 --> 00:11:41,134 use the food that they've been given. 326 00:11:41,950 --> 00:11:42,450 And 327 00:11:42,830 --> 00:11:45,230 in the in that vein, we've had some 328 00:11:45,230 --> 00:11:48,370 programs that I'd like to just highlight briefly. 329 00:11:48,429 --> 00:11:49,490 So for the availability 330 00:11:50,669 --> 00:11:53,889 in our, community health choices program, for example, 331 00:11:54,429 --> 00:11:55,889 we provide home delivered 332 00:11:56,245 --> 00:11:56,745 meals. 333 00:11:57,285 --> 00:12:00,965 So folks who have physical impairments, need personal 334 00:12:00,965 --> 00:12:03,705 attendants in the home, they often can't cook, 335 00:12:04,644 --> 00:12:07,125 or they may be able to manage with 336 00:12:07,125 --> 00:12:07,945 some supports, 337 00:12:08,325 --> 00:12:10,485 but around mealtime in the evenings or things 338 00:12:10,485 --> 00:12:12,059 like that, it's a problem. So we 339 00:12:12,860 --> 00:12:15,039 actually partner with, meal delivery, 340 00:12:15,500 --> 00:12:16,000 providers 341 00:12:16,539 --> 00:12:19,100 and provide home delivered meals for those members. 342 00:12:19,100 --> 00:12:20,860 And it it makes all the difference in 343 00:12:20,860 --> 00:12:23,500 the world, and we can ensure those deliveries 344 00:12:23,500 --> 00:12:25,919 are on a consistent time basis. So, again, 345 00:12:26,105 --> 00:12:27,725 the person now knows 346 00:12:28,585 --> 00:12:30,024 food is going to come on a certain 347 00:12:30,024 --> 00:12:31,785 day. I know how much food I will 348 00:12:31,785 --> 00:12:34,024 have. I know how to store it. It 349 00:12:34,024 --> 00:12:35,785 just requires me to heat it up. So 350 00:12:35,785 --> 00:12:37,245 you're taking away the anxiety 351 00:12:37,705 --> 00:12:39,465 and you make sure that they have access 352 00:12:39,465 --> 00:12:40,205 to nutrition. 353 00:12:41,189 --> 00:12:42,089 For the accessibility 354 00:12:42,629 --> 00:12:43,370 to reduce 355 00:12:43,829 --> 00:12:46,490 costs of accessing some of this food. 356 00:12:46,870 --> 00:12:49,909 We have, a healthy shop healthy card that 357 00:12:49,909 --> 00:12:52,009 we give for our special needs members, 358 00:12:52,549 --> 00:12:53,850 which is a a $500 359 00:12:54,549 --> 00:12:56,169 annual allowance to 360 00:12:56,735 --> 00:12:59,214 use for healthy food and over the counter 361 00:12:59,214 --> 00:13:00,595 products that might support, 362 00:13:01,134 --> 00:13:02,034 health and nutrition. 363 00:13:02,735 --> 00:13:05,235 We have a UPMC neighborhood 364 00:13:05,615 --> 00:13:06,115 center, 365 00:13:06,574 --> 00:13:07,475 which is a, 366 00:13:08,095 --> 00:13:10,815 an actual physical location that we opened up 367 00:13:10,815 --> 00:13:13,570 in East East Liberty section of the city, 368 00:13:14,350 --> 00:13:15,649 that it's for the entire, 369 00:13:16,269 --> 00:13:16,769 neighborhood. 370 00:13:17,149 --> 00:13:19,149 It serves our members, but it also serves 371 00:13:19,149 --> 00:13:20,450 all members of the community. 372 00:13:20,990 --> 00:13:23,230 And that is a one stop shop for 373 00:13:23,230 --> 00:13:24,049 all things, 374 00:13:24,830 --> 00:13:27,404 that impact on the social determinants of health. 375 00:13:27,485 --> 00:13:29,565 So within that building, we have a food 376 00:13:29,565 --> 00:13:30,065 pantry, 377 00:13:30,524 --> 00:13:32,685 and people can come and get actually get 378 00:13:32,685 --> 00:13:34,465 food bags of food and leave. 379 00:13:34,845 --> 00:13:35,504 We have, 380 00:13:35,965 --> 00:13:39,165 folks that can help register people or enroll 381 00:13:39,165 --> 00:13:40,545 people in the supplemental 382 00:13:41,004 --> 00:13:43,779 nutrition assistance program or SNAP. Used to be 383 00:13:43,779 --> 00:13:46,759 called food stamps. So we have individuals there 384 00:13:46,820 --> 00:13:49,139 every day that can help people enroll and 385 00:13:49,139 --> 00:13:52,179 things like that. So that's another example of 386 00:13:52,179 --> 00:13:54,200 how we're trying to improve accessibility. 387 00:13:54,820 --> 00:13:57,720 And we also partner with community based organizations 388 00:13:58,820 --> 00:14:02,315 that provide community health workers that actually go 389 00:14:02,315 --> 00:14:04,794 out into the community. So everybody doesn't have 390 00:14:04,794 --> 00:14:05,774 to come to us. 391 00:14:06,154 --> 00:14:08,154 We actually go out into the community and 392 00:14:08,154 --> 00:14:10,095 help talk to people about 393 00:14:10,554 --> 00:14:12,730 SNAP and things like that and help them 394 00:14:12,730 --> 00:14:15,450 enroll so they can get these additional dollars 395 00:14:15,450 --> 00:14:17,769 each month. It's not a huge sum, but 396 00:14:17,769 --> 00:14:19,610 it's it's really important it can make a 397 00:14:19,610 --> 00:14:22,490 difference or make a bridge in adequate food 398 00:14:22,490 --> 00:14:24,990 for a month. And then for the adequacy 399 00:14:25,289 --> 00:14:27,964 so, again, this is making sure that 400 00:14:28,264 --> 00:14:30,825 the food that you get is appropriate for 401 00:14:30,825 --> 00:14:33,245 your health conditions, is appropriate culturally. 402 00:14:33,865 --> 00:14:36,664 We do something called medically tailored meals. We 403 00:14:36,664 --> 00:14:37,565 have organizations, 404 00:14:38,105 --> 00:14:38,845 food vendors 405 00:14:39,379 --> 00:14:42,820 that have nutritionists on board, design healthy meals 406 00:14:42,820 --> 00:14:43,879 that can be delivered, 407 00:14:44,820 --> 00:14:46,759 across the entire country if necessary, 408 00:14:47,220 --> 00:14:47,720 or 409 00:14:48,100 --> 00:14:51,559 our members who have food sensitive conditions. So 410 00:14:51,954 --> 00:14:54,274 some with kidney disease or some with heart 411 00:14:54,274 --> 00:14:55,975 failure where salt and, 412 00:14:56,595 --> 00:14:59,394 sugar and and and electrolytes have to be 413 00:14:59,394 --> 00:15:02,434 monitored carefully to keep people in, in in 414 00:15:02,434 --> 00:15:04,294 the best control that we can. 415 00:15:04,940 --> 00:15:06,860 We have and we have many more programs, 416 00:15:06,860 --> 00:15:08,720 Jacob, but that's just an example 417 00:15:09,659 --> 00:15:11,740 of some of the types of programs and 418 00:15:11,740 --> 00:15:14,559 and where we're trying to target our efforts 419 00:15:15,100 --> 00:15:18,079 to meet the needs, of food as medicine, 420 00:15:18,539 --> 00:15:19,440 for our members. 421 00:15:20,445 --> 00:15:23,644 Wow. I mean, clearly so much innovative and 422 00:15:23,644 --> 00:15:24,144 impactful 423 00:15:24,524 --> 00:15:27,725 work going on across the UPMC enterprise. So 424 00:15:27,725 --> 00:15:29,245 I really do appreciate you giving us an 425 00:15:29,245 --> 00:15:30,465 overview of that, Crystal. 426 00:15:30,925 --> 00:15:33,279 Before we go, what else are we missing? 427 00:15:33,419 --> 00:15:35,820 Any final thoughts you wanna offer or bits 428 00:15:35,820 --> 00:15:38,220 of advice you'd like to share while you 429 00:15:38,220 --> 00:15:39,899 have the attention of a lot of health 430 00:15:39,899 --> 00:15:41,839 plan leaders from all over the country? 431 00:15:42,379 --> 00:15:44,240 Well, we're really excited, Jacob, 432 00:15:44,634 --> 00:15:47,694 because our governor and our secretary of health, 433 00:15:48,154 --> 00:15:49,534 doctor Valerie Arcush, 434 00:15:50,235 --> 00:15:51,294 were trying to 435 00:15:51,834 --> 00:15:53,054 kick off additional 436 00:15:53,434 --> 00:15:53,934 services, 437 00:15:54,475 --> 00:15:55,694 through state funding 438 00:15:56,889 --> 00:15:59,690 to do things like help people reenter when 439 00:15:59,690 --> 00:16:00,990 they've been incarcerated, 440 00:16:01,850 --> 00:16:05,450 to expand the coverage of children continuously until 441 00:16:05,450 --> 00:16:07,309 the age of 6, insurance coverage, 442 00:16:08,009 --> 00:16:11,345 but also in this new group of offerings 443 00:16:11,404 --> 00:16:14,044 that the governor and the secretary are trying 444 00:16:14,044 --> 00:16:15,184 to get off the ground 445 00:16:16,044 --> 00:16:18,845 is medically tailored meals for for folks who 446 00:16:18,845 --> 00:16:22,065 have serious medical serious mental illness. 447 00:16:22,590 --> 00:16:24,769 That's a huge, huge thing. 448 00:16:25,470 --> 00:16:26,290 We know, 449 00:16:26,830 --> 00:16:29,629 that in addition to housing and medical care, 450 00:16:29,629 --> 00:16:30,129 again, 451 00:16:30,430 --> 00:16:33,410 helping people with serious mental illness 452 00:16:33,870 --> 00:16:37,009 maintain adequate nutrition, some stability there 453 00:16:37,475 --> 00:16:39,394 can really make a difference in their recovery 454 00:16:39,394 --> 00:16:40,774 or at least their sustained, 455 00:16:41,394 --> 00:16:44,615 recovery. So we're pretty excited that Pennsylvania 456 00:16:45,315 --> 00:16:48,035 and our leaders are really pushing forward with 457 00:16:48,035 --> 00:16:49,735 important projects like this. 458 00:16:50,440 --> 00:16:52,199 Absolutely. It sounds like a lot of really 459 00:16:52,199 --> 00:16:52,699 amazing 460 00:16:53,000 --> 00:16:54,139 things on the horizon. 461 00:16:54,839 --> 00:16:57,159 Doctor Clark, thank you so much for taking 462 00:16:57,159 --> 00:16:59,159 the time to be with us and for 463 00:16:59,159 --> 00:17:02,360 sharing your insights and impactful work with our 464 00:17:02,360 --> 00:17:05,160 listeners. We truly appreciate it. Thank you, Jacob. 465 00:17:05,220 --> 00:17:07,300 If you'd like to listen to more podcasts 466 00:17:07,300 --> 00:17:09,320 from Becker's Healthcare, you can visit beckershospitalreview.com.