Introducing: VSSL Views

Health systems play an integral role in the nationwide shift towards value-based payment and care. In particular, they must evaluate and respond to external forces (e.g., payer and public policies) while implementing organizational strategies that encourage high 

value (high quality, cost-appropriate) and discourage low value care.

While most health systems are aware of the need to meet these imperatives, there is significant variation in how they organize teams in order to incorporate policy and care delivery expertise into actionable insight about value-based care.

The Value & Systems Science Lab (VSSL) was conceived to help address these needs, and VSSL Views -- a series of pieces that will be featured on the blog, along with other venues --seeks to support this overarching mission by (a) providing high-yield analyses and interpretations of policy and practice developments within the Lab's focus areas and (b) featuring work of team members in these areas.

Beyond an aspiration goal, doing so is also a matter of practicality. The power of the pen is clear, and whether in supporting policy change, practice transformation, management and leadership, or in speaking up about or identifying solutions to address disparities and other issues, writing can be an effective way to make a positive impact. We seek to do that well.

To be sure, writing that seeks to guide policy and practice must itself by guided by strong ethics, fairness, and even-handedness. Balancing all of this can be a delicate process, but one we take very seriously at VSSL. We have committed to doing so not because it’s expedient or easy, but because of the potential to support better health and health care.

We hope you’ll join us in producing and learning from this important work.