With an increased focus on racial and economic disparities in recent years, more attention has been paid to social determinants of health (SDOH). The Department of Health and Human Services defines SDOH as conditions in the environments where people are born, live, learn, work, play, worship and age that affect a wide range of health, functioning, and quality of life outcomes and risks.[1] This can impact people’s access to healthcare, which Ryan Croteau, director of client services for Health Dialog, sees as one of the largest areas of concern in the healthcare industry today.
“Over the past few years, there has been increased visibility of social inequities and under-served populations and people are trying to proactively mitigate that,” Ryan stated. “You have people that speak different languages or have disabilities and it’s important to ensure that everyone is in a position where they can access and utilize healthcare services.”
Having received a master’s degree in Public Policy shortly before starting his career at Health Dialog over 14 years ago, Ryan has an appreciation for addressing issues like SDOH and healthcare accessibility. He was always interested in politics and public policy, which he sees as closely tied to the work Health Dialog does.
“Public policy is about managing things on a population level and finding the best way to produce positive outcomes. In population health, you have similar goals with clients, supporting individuals with their unique healthcare challenges, but also looking at trends to improve health across the entire population,” Ryan explained. “The populations Health Dialog works with are from across the country. They span different economic strata, different cultures, geographies. It’s a diverse population reflective of society in the U.S. and we have the opportunity and tools to help them proactively manage their health.”
Before joining Health Dialog, Ryan had a firsthand experience with a family member who was sick and facing a difficult time. Fortunately, his loved one had access to medical information and could educate herself on her condition and treatment. “If we didn’t have the access, means or education to do the research, I’m not sure how it would have turned out,” Ryan said about his family member who has now fully recovered. “After going through that and seeing how important having access to information and resources is to your personal healthcare journey and knowing that was part of the mission of Health Dialog, they became the top of my list of places to work.”
Having moved up the ranks from a Program Manager to Director of Client Services, Ryan now works with clients utilizing our Chronic Care Management and Shared Decision Making solutions as a single point of contact for program operations. He manages all of the pieces and acts as a liaison with the various teams at Health Dialog to ensure we’re running efficiently and producing positive outcomes.
Ryan explained that there are a number of things to consider when serving diverse populations, such as Health Dialog does, and ensuring equitable access to healthcare services:
“We don’t offer a one-size-fits-all approach,” Ryan said. “We treat our members like individuals, listening to them, assessing where they are, what they need and helping them get there.” And that is how Health Dialog and people like Ryan are making quality healthcare more accessible to everyone.
Title: Director of Client Services
Tenure with Health Dialog: 14.5 years
Education: Bachelor’s degree in Urban Studies from the University of Connecticut and master’s degree in Public Policy from the University of Southern Maine, Muskie School of Public Service
Family: Married to wife Jasmine for 14 years
[1] U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Social Determinants of Health. https://health.gov/healthypeople/priority-areas/social-determinants-health.