Health care organizations in Houston, and across the country, are facing considerable challenges - among them an aging population, consumers who are challenged by health care costs, ever-increasing demands to improve quality, and cybersecurity risk.
Then there’s reimbursement changes that shift more financial risk to doctors and hospitals, leaving providers scrambling for the means to help patients better manage chronic conditions and focus on preventive care.
Solving any one of these issues isn’t easy; managing them in a collective sense is even more challenging. That’s why providers are increasingly looking at technology to play a more profound role in addressing their economic, risk, regulatory, and patient care concerns. Let’s look at several ways today’s enhanced technologies can help health care organizations to succeed.
Bending the cost curve
Today, a disproportionate amount of health care spending is coming from a fairly small group within the overall population. By refocusing how they diagnose and treat patients within this group, providers can begin to bend the cost curve in a downward direction. How? Data.
Every health care organization has a tremendous amount of data on its patients, and nearly every facet of its business. Capturing and organizing that information - and leveraging it to enhance the patient experience while optimizing costs - is far more achievable than ever before. For example, technology can play a role in risk stratification, helping providers to identify the most suitable treatment paths for specific patients, leading to quicker diagnoses and more precise care overall. At KPMG, we’ve worked with health systems in Houston, as well as nationally, on efforts like this.
Enhancing the ‘customer’ experience
Health care has consistently lagged other industries when it comes to investing in technology to enhance the overall “consumer” (patient) experience. That needs to change. One place to begin the journey is with the use of electronic health records to better understand the needs of patients, strengthen the coordination of care, and shield them from medical errors and adverse drug events. The use of artificial intelligence and telehealth solutions - which allow patients to conveniently consult with clinicians for non-emergencies, saving time for health care providers - can strengthen patient access to care, and improve productivity among health care providers.
Closing gaps in care
Technology, particularly data & analytics, can help health care organizations track and benchmark their performance with other providers, and identify opportunities to improve quality. New insights can be gleaned from clinical practice patterns, patient outcomes, and a wide range of other information - and new tools can be developed to aid strategic decision making.
For example, dashboards with metric tools such as heat mapping can outline patient population trends in cost of care, mortality, length of stay, and readmissions. The analytics have become sophisticated enough where it is also possible to incorporate genetic information and social determinants of health - such as education, transportation, and poverty - into patient care strategies.
By deploying these, and other technologies health care providers can improve the patient experience, enhance clinical outcomes, optimize operational processes and, ultimately, strengthen financial performance.
Darron Gill is a KPMG health care partner in the advisory practice based in the Houston office.
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February 07, 2020 at 08:00PM
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Opinion: Stronger health care organizations build with IT - Houston Chronicle
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