Apply epidemiologic concepts and theory to health care planning, directing, controlling, organizing and staffing, and financial management

• Apply epidemiologic concepts
  and theory to health care planning, directing, controlling, organizing
  and staffing, and financial management

Timberline Health,
an integrated delivery system serving residents in five counties in eastern
Washington, is considering new opportunities to increase community awareness
of the organization’s outpatient health services. As the new business
development manager of hearing health services, Jack Andrews is responsible
for evaluating the feasibility of marketing activities for the hearing
service line and must allocate resources to promotional activities that
forecast positive return on investment. One option under consideration is to
sponsor the health and wellness pavilion at the Spokane County Fair. Research
from comparable markets has shown

that wellness fairs
are not only effective at educating communities about potential risk factors
for health problems, including hearing loss but also increasing consumer
awareness of new or existing health services provided by local health
organizations. These activities are essential to Timberline Health’s mission
within the community.

Since little is
known about the hearing status of residents in the market area, Jack enlists
the services of his organization’s epidemiologist, Dr. Ruth Litchfield, to
help him evaluate the potential return on investment for this marketing
campaign. Dr. Litchfield incorporates several factors into her analysis. She
reviews public health data on hearing loss, occupational and age distribution
data for local residents, as well as a query of Timberline Health’s patient
databases. Based on this research, she estimates the prevalence of hearing
loss in the five-county service area at 18 percent, slightly higher than the
national average (NIH, 2010). Jack receives information from the fair’s sales
and marketing department to help in his calculations. Specifically,
sponsorship consists of an investment of $50,000 for the design and
production of promotional materials and rental of pavilion space for the
duration of the twelve day fair. Data from the previous three years shows on
average 250,000 people attend the fair, of which 1% visit the wellness
pavilion and participate in health screening services.

If Timberline Health
is to offer mobile hearing screening, the organization must invest in new
portable audiology equipment. Jack receives a quotation from his supplier and
estimates the total investment in new audiometers and audiometric booths at
$16,000. Timberline Health will use existing diagnostic equipment to test
people who have failed the initial screening (i.e. test positive for hearing
loss), so it is unnecessary to invest in additional equipment for the hearing
centers. Vendor specifications for the screening and diagnostic equipment are
indicated in Table 1.

 Table 1

Furthermore, Jack
calculates that he must provide coverage for three 6-hour shifts per day and
each shift must have three audiologists to meet the demand for screening
tests. He anticipates hiring nine people to provide coverage for the duration
of the fair. The hourly rate for audiologists is

$37.50.

People who fail the
initial screening at the fair are referred to an audiologist for a diagnostic
test. Jack assumes in his calculations that all people who are referred for
diagnostic testing follow up with an audiologist in one of Timberline
Health’s hearing centers. Initial screening tests at the fair are free;
however, Timberline Health charges $57.00 for a diagnostic hearing test,
which costs the organization $24.00. Using past sales data and industry
metrics, Jack forecasts that of the total number of people diagnosed with
hearing loss at hearing centers only 20% will purchase hearing aids (NIH,
2010). He reviews sales and margin data from the prior year to identify the
product mix for his calculations as indicated in Table 2.

 Table 2

Reference

National Institutes
of Health (NIH) (2010, October 1). Fact Sheet: Hearing aids. Retrieved from

U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services: National Institutes of Health:https://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/hearing-aids

Write a Briefing
report (no more than 3 pages) meeting the needs of Dr. Litchfield’s request:

Dr. Litchfield
requests your assistance in conducting a needs assessment for hearing
services in the five-county service area. Consider the following in your
assessment:

1. Population demographics play a
   determining role in the types of health services needed by communities.
   What demographic data may be important in determining the need for
   hearing services? (the National Institute on Deafness and Other
   Communication Disorders is a good resource)
2. Timberline Health has a robust
   electronic health record with strong data analytic capabilities. How
   might this data be analyzed to evaluate the need for hearing services in
   the community?
3. Timberline Health provides a wide
   array of health services to patients in the community.

Design a screening
questionnaire (as an attachment to the report) for use in primary care
clinics to help identify community need for hearing services (no more than
5-10 questions using the Six Steps for Creating an Effective
Questionnaire). 

Website link for the
Six Steps for Creating an Effective Questionnaire:  https://www.edelman.com/six-steps-creating-effective-questionnaire

1.  What other factors may influence
   the need for hearing services in the community?