This resource explores whether individuals’ levels of engagement in their care — referred to as “patient activation” — correlates with their use of services and status as “high need, high cost.” People who are less activated may benefit more than others from care coordination programs.

• The resource explains the advantages of allocating resources based on individuals’ level of engagement, as measured by their activation scores.
• Among persons at high risk of high health costs, the least activated individuals were significantly more likely to have an emergency department visit or hospitalization compared with the most activated.
• Patient activation scores accurately predicted the use of costly services three years later.
• Patient activation scores can help programs more effectively assess risk for high utilization, manage costs, and tailor outreach to individuals.

The Commonwealth Fund also published a short summary of this resource.