OHPND
CRITERIA
OHPND
Out of Hospital Premature Natural Death, or OHPND is not well defined, risk factors are not well understood, and prevention and intervention efforts are fragmented. In the Lincoln Project, our criteria for OHPND included those who died:
•between the ages of 18-74
•outside of a hospital or medical facility
•of natural causes, excluding cancer and trauma
Many people whose deaths are classified as OHPND suffered from undiagnosed or illtreated heart or vascular conditions. In addition, these individuals are often socially and medically isolated. What we know about OHPND suggests that prevention and intervention models should ultimately be focused on patient engagement and follow-up.
The focus on an outcome, OHPND, rather than a specific disease, such as diabetes, allows Lincoln investigators to understand the complex interplay among disease states and health determinants (the environment, cultural issues, access to medical care and others) to design interventions that address all risk factors in the community.
By viewing communities as the cornerstone of wellbeing, we believe we can produce long-term change that goes beyond local interventions. We hope our research can contribute to national policy decisions that inform community health across the United States.