Transforming Clinical Integration
Last month, I presented at the Governance Institute on Engaging Physicians: Moving from Me to We. For more information on how to help independent and employed physicians at the same time, please see my blog post.
It has taken me longer than usual to summarize the proceedings of this conference because of considerable activity to prepare for the June 30 launch of my newest book, Getting It Done: Experienced Healthcare Leaders Reveal Field-Tested Strategies for Clinical and Financial Success. It has given me great pride to salute healthcare heroes at sixteen organizations throughout the US who have broken down barriers and improved care outcomes for their communities.
Clinical Integration at Advocate Healthcare
Lee Sacks, CEO of Advocate Physician Partners, discussed clinical integration, which he defined as a structured collaboration to improve healthcare quality and efficiency. What made his presentation memorable is that he worked with independent physicians, most of whom in groups no larger than 3 people, to achieve ground-breaking outcomes. Clinical integration creates value for:
- Hospitals, by strengthening loyalty and positioning the hospital for healthcare reform efforts that require true partnership, such as decreasing readmissions
- Physicians, by helping them to differentiate in a competitive marketplace, giving them disease registry data that helps them improve performance, and assisting them with managed care contracting
- Communities, by improving clinical outcomes, focusing on patient-centered efficiencies like online scheduling, and engaging patients in the partnership to improve population health
The metrics that they are using in their value index to monitor and drive down cost include:
- Readmissions
- Adjusted length of stay
- Potentially avoidable admissions
- Cost per adjusted discharge
- Global cost of care per member per month (they have 230,000 capitated patients)
- Advocate attributable cost trend
- Non-Advocate attributable cost trend
For further information on this pioneering healthcare system, please view their 2011 value report.
Healthcare Transformation at University of South Florida
Stephen Klasko, CEO, USF Health and Dean of Medicine, University of South Florida, gave an energetic presentation with the subtitle “Can I Click My Heels and Go Back to My (Patient-Centered Medical) Home. He paraphrased Woody Allen’s quote: We are at a crossroads, where one road leads to destruction, the other despair. Let’s hope we choose the right one. He advised participants to forget reform and instead think transformation to:
- Redesign care processes
- Make effective use of information technology
- Manage clinical knowledge and skills
- Develop effective teams
- Coordinate care across patient conditions, services, and settings
- Incorporate performance and outcome measurements to promote continuous improvement
- Demonstrate ability to adapt to change
A Wharton study, where he obtained his MBA, demonstrated that 78% of MBAs viewed creativity as an important part of their success in contrast to only 12% of physicians who felt the same way. He quoted Buckminster Fuller: “You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.”
He concluded with the following survival guide:
- Think into the future
- Ask each administrative and physician leader to identify one game-changing idea yearly
- Look at the technology that your kids are using as future patient care and marketing opportunities
As always, I welcome your input to improve healthcare collaboration where you work.
Kenneth H. Cohn
© 2011, all rights reserved
Disclosure:
I have not received any compensation for writing this content. I have no material connection to the brands, topics and/or products that are mentioned herein.
Posted in Learning
Comments
Comment from I’m particularly interested in what Mr. Klasko had to say regarding effective use of information technology. My firm is currently transitioning to a behavioral health software. Did he provide any suggestions for smaller entities on how to most effectively use these new systems?
Comment from Must demonstrate ability to mentor and assist others. Must demonstrate a high level of accountability and personal responsibility.
Comment from Thanks for your comments; mentoring is indeed important, especially now with the rate at which new information is coming. Teamwork, communication, and collaboration all go hand-in-hand
Share Your Opinions