From 2014-2017, the Camden Coalition partnered with researchers affiliated with J-PAL North America to conduct a randomized controlled trial to investigate how our signature care management model, the Camden Core Model, affects patients’ hospital readmissions. The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, found no difference between the treatment and control groups on hospital readmissions within 180 days, but did find a statistically significant rise in the number of participants receiving SNAP benefits (food assistance).

In this brief, the Camden Coalition’s Aaron Truchil, Director of Strategy and Analytics; Dawn Wiest, Director of Action Research and Evaluation; and Teagan Kuruna, Senior Communications Manager, provide context for complex care and care delivery in Camden, NJ; the study itself; and implications for the Camden Coalition and other organizations. The study illuminated lessons for the Camden Coalition and the field of complex care, including areas of future research, the value of identifying holistic outcome measures for complex care, and the necessity of increased upstream investment in the social determinants of health.