Author: dondennison

The Healthcare Revenue Revolution Continues

dondennison Financials ,

I continue to study how healthcare payment reform will affect services like diagnostic imaging. I blogged about it here, and here.

If you are really keen on learning about this topic, I recommend that you follow some of the links provided. Lots of info to absorb.

Now, HHS—in what is being called an ‘historic’ announcement—is making major changes towards value-based reimbursement.

Also, the trends in Revenue Cycle Management (RCM) provide insights to how the financial management leaders see things changing. This article from Healthcare IT News, titled Revenue cycle headed for a ‘new world’, reinforces the trend towards provider consolidation and predicts that RCM will be increasingly outsourced. Worth a read.

One thought I have been musing…

Will value-based reimbursement accelerate the adoption of so called Enterprise Imaging capture and integration within the EMR (using a common platform for image management and viewing)?

Up until now, the ROI on enterprise imaging has been elusive, mostly because it is compared to fee-for-service imaging, like Radiology. However, once the reimbursement model changes, and the improved correlation of images and findings across diagnostic and clinical imaging proves to contribute positively to outcomes (as I expect that it will), the capture and integration of enterprise images within the patient record may be rapidly adopted.

Article – Insurers will have to change to survive

dondennison Financials , , , , , , , ,

I have been very interested in the changes to how Radiology revenues will be affected during the shift from volume to value based reimbursement, along with changes to healthcare business models in general. I blogged about it here.

I have also been interested in how Radiology will have to change their behaviors in this new environment of transparency and empowered consumers. I blogged about that here.

In this article, a healthcare investment firm details how insurers will have to change in order to compete for mind share among consumers (with choice).

Another very interesting point they make is about wearables. I agree that they are only used by so called Innovators (from the Innovation Adoption Lifecycle model) today.

But what if insurance companies start offering incentives in the form of reduced policy premiums for people that use them (and share the data with the insurer perhaps). This is much like having a security system on your home lowers the cost of your theft insurance, or smoke detectors lowers your fire insurance premiums. This would create a boom in the mHealth sector, and would likely improve outcomes through early detection and correcting unhealthy behaviors.

I wonder: Will providers and insurers compete for who knows the patient best?

Providers have the EMR data (for encounters with their facility), and perhaps from an HIE (if they are part of one). Insurers have info from payment transactions spanning hospitals, clinics, pharmacies and others.

Where will the data from wearables go? If the insurers are buying (by lowering premiums), I will bet that they get it more often that the provider.

Will wearables and mHealth device vendors be savvy enough to provide it to both? Will consumer-controlled PHR vendors (or information aggregation and brokering tools) have an optimized method for getting data from all a patient’s devices and apps into EMR systems? Will the provider’s EMR or HIE be open enough to receive and store the wearable’s data without manual data entry (or copy-paste)?

Will patient’s be willing to share this personal info with providers and insurers? I will bet: yes.

If I thought the data would help my outcome, and I trusted my provider, I would share it.

If it was certain to lower my premiums, I would share the info with my insurer. If the insurer reserved the right to increase premiums based on info that my wearable provided (i.e. if I sit on the couch too long, my payment goes up), I might reconsider.

Will providers supply no cost (or subsidized) wearable and mHealth devices (or apps) to patients? Will insurers and providers share this cost?

So, how can wearables help in Radiology? Other than sending out reminders on where and when to show up for the exam, and what to do (e.g. eating, etc.) prior to the procedure.

Enterprise Imaging – New HIMSS-SIIM Workgroup

dondennison Healthcare IT , , , , , ,

The discussion of so called Enterprise Imaging is a hot topic. So I was very excited to read about the newly announced joint workgroup between HIMSS and SIIM. I believe it holds a lot of promise.

In my experience, there is no lack of technical solutions for capturing, managing, discovering, accessing and viewing enterprise images and related information. The challenge is discovering and sharing the knowledge on best practices of how to put it all together and how to operate the systems that manage this information.

Like diagnostic imaging exams, enterprise images are part of the patient’s medical record, so understanding how they should best be incorporated into the EMR is very important. And this is not just a technical discussion, there are lots of issues around policies and governance of the data that organizations—not their vendors—have to get a handle on.

This is why this workgroup is so important. HIMSS knows all about EMR solutions, and SIIM knows imaging informatics. A perfect marriage.

Creating Practical Value in Practice (of Radiology)

dondennison Radiology , , , ,

There is a lot written these days about the shift from volume-based to value-based in Radiology (and other medical specialties).

The thing is: volume is real easy to measure. And what gets measured, gets managed.

So, how do we measure value?

One can measure the time it takes to complete the report, sign it, and make it available to physicians and other members of the care team. Radiology practitioners call this Turnaround Time (or TAT). This is pretty easy to do.

We could try to measure whether the report is correct. In other words, is what the Radiologist concludes actually what is wrong (or not wrong) with the patient? This can be harder to measure, as it may take a lot of work to correlate many different data points, or a lengthy period of time for proof to be found.

There are a couple of activities that Radiologists, and other people working in the department, can do to improve the perceived value of Radiology.

In this article, a number of suggestions are made as to how to increase the visibility of Radiologists, as well as improve relationships and trust among other physicians and even patients.

And this WSJ article focuses on simply improving the clarity of the report by improving the language and writing skills of Radiologist. Seems obvious as to the value this would provide, when you read it, but how many Radiologists routinely attend training on how to communicate better?

While improving how Radiologists interact with the outside world—whether through better interactions or better writing—will help the Radiologist’s career, one would hope that it would also improve care. Better communication certainly couldn’t hurt.

Article – Who is the better radiologist? Hint, it’s not that easy.

dondennison Radiology , ,

I really enjoyed this article. It gets into the specifics of what we could mean by quality of Radiology reading.

I think it gets to the crux of the problem in any domain when quality is desired—a trade off is necessary. It may be cost, or it may be the experience of the user, but it will be somewhere.

Let’s use a similar evaluation in software development.

Coders that are fast are lauded as innovative and bright and creative, until their barely-tested and unscalable application fails in operations, or a security hole results in a data breach. These folks are often called “hackers” (but generally in a positive way).

The more thorough developer is criticized for taking too long and keeping the application in the lab (instead of the “real world”) for too long. They spend significantly more time in the design and testing and documentation areas, so to outsiders, they are slow. Their products take more time (missing some early opportunities seized by hackers), but the applications are much more reliable and supportable in operations. They are professional software developers.

As someone that has managed R&D teams before, you always want both behaviors (and results), but as the article posits, you often cannot have both. You certainly shouldn’t expect to get both.

I often say: Decisions are easy (I decide I want innovation and reliability, and I want it fast), but Choices are hard. I value people that can make choices, and live with them, much more than so called “decision makers”.

Article – SIIM: Experiment in web technologies points to future of health IT

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Here is an article summarizing the way Cleveland Clinic is using REST-based APIs to solve real problems in their institution. Taken from a talk given by Mat Coolidge at the SIIM 2014 Annual Meeting.

My First Year as a Consultant – What I have Learned

dondennison Change Management ,

It has now been over a year since I became a consultant. I have learned many, many things and met some amazing people. I thought I would share some of the things that I have learned.

What was the hardest part of becoming a Consultant?

In past roles, I had direct reports and responsibilities of deliverables and operations. I had authority to make decisions, within my defined scope of control. So, I would make decisions, and instruct people to act. As a consultant, you provide recommendations. You use words like “I have observed…” and “According to my evaluation…” and “It is my recommendation…”. It was not really all that hard to make the shift, but changing any habit takes work.

To be honest, becoming a consultant was never a dream of mine. What attracted me to it was the variety of interactions and the opportunity to work on interesting projects. And getting to choose who I worked with. I have been really lucky to work with some great people at my clients, so I am enjoying it quite a bit.

Why Hire a Consultant?

I have found three main reasons people engage a consultant.

Capability

They lack some important skill set in their organization for some short term project. An example is preparing and managing an effective RFP process.

Capacity

Staff is too busy with the day-to-day operations to take on the work of an additional project.

Neutrality

There is a perception of bias among some stakeholders and they need an independent analysis and recommendation.

My Advice

Clients come to me with a wide variety of problems, but my overarching advice is usually the same. You need 3 things: To know (honestly and accurately) where you are; To know where you want/need to be, and; The right amount of talent to get there.

The first item can often be the hardest as our perceptions can skew our reality. The second requires some vision and input and collaboration from lots of viewpoints. The last sounds hard, but it is actually the easiest of the three. You just need the will to seek the talent and to commit the resources to getting it. If the first two steps are done right, the necessity of investing the resources is usually pretty obvious.

The first step to change is admitting that you can’t stay where you are.

Imaging Informatics Knowledge

I have found that there are a number of people that are skilled in HL7 integration (though still not enough to complete all the interfaces needed fast enough), but the level of knowledge in DICOM and IHE is less than I expected. A lot of problems can be solved if one understands the purpose of the information models and transactions that DICOM and IHE have built. The importance of ongoing learning in this area, such as by being a SIIM member and getting involved in that community, is more important than ever.

What is the best PACS (or VNA, or Enterprise Viewer, or other product)?

I get asked this all the time. The answer is always “it depends”. And, I am not trying to use consultant-speak, but it really depends on what you are try to achieve. If there was a one “best” vehicle for everyone, we would all be driving (or flying) it. Different products have their strengths and weaknesses. If you know your business goals, you can define requirements, and then assess the product (and vendor) as to the fit to your needs. Coming up with methods to verify vendor claims, and validate that the value claimed will be realized in your environment, is another important step in the process. The key is designing the right level of “test” (which will have a cost) for the level of risk that the capability represents.

In Closing

I actually learned a lot more than what I listed here, and am happy to share everything I ever learn …with my clients. 🙂 I will post a similar summary after Year Two and see what wisdom another year brings.

Article – CDC on EHR errors: Enough’s enough

dondennison Healthcare IT , , , , , , ,

In this article, the CDC has issued a warning on the issues of user interface design when presenting patient information in EHRs.

As the examples in the article illustrate, having information in digital form is not enough. It needs to be presented in an effective way to ensure comprehension. After the current wave of information digitization and consolidation (moving information from disparate, departmental clinical information systems into a single large enterprise system), the next wave of effort needs to be on privacy/security, accessibility/reliability, and usability, or the incredibly high potential gains will not be realized.

Users need to trust the system, it needs to be there when they need it (wherever that is), and they have to want to use it.

P.S. Here is an infographic on EHR adoption.

Article – Communities vs. Networks

dondennison Inspiration

I highly recommend that you read this very well-written article on the differences between Communities and Networks.

Upon reading, I immediately identified the networks in my life, and the true communities.

I have lamented the erosion of communities to make room for networks in my own life. And I (try to) make genuine efforts to keep my true communities together, but it is not always easy and too often people fail to see the purpose or value.

The Value of Hackathons in Healthcare

dondennison Healthcare IT , , , , , ,

Having participated in the inaugural SIIM 2014 Hackathon, I can appreciate the diverse expectations that participants have. Some think of these events as a way to learn and experiment, others a competition. Some prefer to work as a team, others alone. Some are interested in integrating existing systems and data in new ways, while others want to invent something completely new.

In any case, I found this article insightful. It explores why the concept of “hacking” is so prevalent in healthcare, and also touches on why new “apps” often struggle to make it past the hackathon stage. It even posits that a hackathon can replace the traditional RFP procurement process for identifying and selecting innovative solutions.