Population Health in Pediatric Primary Care as a Means to Achieving Child Health Equity

Abstract

We propose population health as a model of care to advance efforts to achieve child health equity. We use the structure-process-outcome framework to highlight key structures of pediatric population health necessary to catalyze what has been slow progress to date. Using specific ongoing examples, we then show how different models of integrated health care delivery systems align population health structures to enable processes aimed to achieve child health equity. We conclude by highlighting the critical role of committed leadership to drive progress.

Keywords: Child health equity; Clinical integration; Clinically integrated networks; Financial integration; Pediatric primary care; Population health; Social determinants of health.