Ep 38 – Helping Communities Thrive with Primary Care for All, with Dr. Christopher Crow

What this episode covers

When Thomas Edison created the electric light bulb, he didn’t stop with that one incredible invention. He took the next step and created the industry that would maximize the benefit of that light bulb, the infrastructure needed to make that light bulb become a permeating and permanent piece of society. This is the type of vision needed for the health care system as a whole, and the type of vision that is occurring in Dallas Texas. Catalyst Health Network’s physicians are intent on the vision of “Primary Care for All”, serving communities that are mired in a systemic, multi-generational crisis—where one in three children in Dallas lives in poverty, the third-highest rate of child poverty in the nation. This week’s guest, Dr. Christopher Crow, President of Catalyst Health Network, has connected and aligned a network of more than 1,000+ Primary Care Providers with nearly 1 million lives across North Texas, to build a better care model for patients that improves health and lowers cost. His work with Catalyst led them to be the first North Texas physician network to hold value-based contracts with the top four major carriers: Aetna, UnitedHealthcare, BCBSTX, and Cigna. To date, Catalyst has saved an impressive $100 million for the communities they serve. Dr. Crow and Catalyst are a bright example of leadership in the race to value! Episode Bookmarks: 04:00 Thomas Edison’s signature invention of the light bulb was a little more than a parlor trick without a system of electric power generation and transmission 05:00 How Catalyst you’ve been able to imbue a full spectrum of innovation with its value attempts 06:00 The origin story of Dr. Crow and Catalyst Health Network 07:20 Systems thinking design and strategy as a leading force to payer collaboration 08:20 Dr. Crow’s A-Ha moment when seeing Catalyst’s performance data and how value design and PCMH really does lowers cost and utilization 09:30 How growing up in the small town of Hillsboro, Texas inspired Dr. Crow to help communities thrive 10:50 The three pillars to helping communities thrive are health, education, and business. 11:20 Building a healthcare system to deliver more value starts with team-based primary care. 12:45 f an independent primary care practice can thrive (not just survive), the data shows that the community will thrive as well. 13:30 Centralization of population health management with deep personalization 15:00 Leveraging trust of the physician-patient relationship by extending it to the entire care team at scale 15:35 The concept of relationship compounding in value-based care and how it leads to lower costs and better health 16:40 The income and public health disparities in Dallas, Texas and how life expectancy differs by 24 years between neighboring zip codes! 18:10 Dallas is a tale of two cities – affluence and poverty.  What is Dr. Crow’s vision to help everyone in the community thrive? 19:30 Dr. Crow’s vision for “Primary Care For All” to improve longevity and prosperity 21:00 The impact of COVID-19 on building virtual care and telehealth capabilities within the practice 21:30 The importance of telehealth in addressing issues with Behavioral Health and “healthcare deserts” 23:00 Creating the Catalyst Community Foundation to provide access to affordable, quality care, starting with COVID-19 testing and vaccinations 25:15 “If you really want to create impact with high leverage, go upstream with primary care and social services”. 26:20 Building a business model for a self-sustaining, community-based foundation that will ultimately lead to Primary Care For All