McKinsey Health Institute: Focus on Health Insights Body

The McKinsey Health Institute (MHI) is a global health body set up by the consulting firm McKinsey & Company. Its aim is to provide analysis and insight to help advance human health in historically underinvested areas.

MHI does not directly provide consulting services but rather, serves to generate health insights that help advance health provision worldwide. It is staffed by teams of researchers, data scientists and health experts, and is a sister institute of the McKinsey Global Institute, the firm's business and economics research arm.

Areas the MHI focuses on include:

• Brain health
  
• Employee health
  
• Healthy longevity
  
• Health worker capacity
  
• Sustainability & health
  
• Infectious diseases
  
• Equity & health
  
• Healthy living

It provides data-driven analysis around these and many other topics, and helps inform decision-making by healthcare providers, pharmaceutical companies, policy makers and anyone who has a stake in advancing human health.

MHI collaborates with health leaders & academics

MHI research usually involves collaboration with health leaders and academic institutions, and publishes reports, articles and graphics-based content to share its findings.

One recent study explored healthcare productivity across countries, and focused on factors such as the impact of holistic employee health and of advancing workplace health.

Another study analysed the economic burden of brain health challenges and evaluated intervention strategies with the potential to improve disease prevention and management.

One area that has become an increasingly important area of research is brain health, an area covering cognitive function, mental health and the prevention and treatment of mental, neurological, and substance use disorders.

The MHI points out that, since the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a 25% increase in depressive and anxiety disorders, and yet this area remains one of the least addressed and poorly resourced health topics.

Collaboration is an important part of how MHI operates. 

MHI works with key organisations on brain health

On brain health, for example, it is collaborating with the following organisations, among others:

• Kokoro   A mental health nonprofit that works with a global network of partners and funders, using the UN Sustainable Development Goals as its core framework of operation. 
  MHI is working with Kokoro to help empower healthcare leaders to scale mental health innovation through public-private-social partnerships and outcomes-based models of financing.
• The Kennedy Forum (TKF) helps young people cope with mental health problems through prevention and early intervention. MHI worked with it to engage local and national leaders in designing cross-sectoral approaches to mental health. 
• Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center is an international leader in paediatric medicine, research and education. MHI helped it develop and deliver a free, web-based interactive digital curriculum to upskill educators in identifying and supporting youth exposed to traumatic stress.