Article Summary
Numerous healthcare systems are actively seeking valuable data and analytics that generate practical insights to drive enhancements in clinical quality, operational efficiency, and financial performance.
In light of the challenges faced by health systems, the pursuit of data-driven insights is both commendable and crucial. To that end, more sophisticated data and analytics platforms are capable of managing vast and intricate datasets. These ecosystems provide a sturdy framework for processing, analyzing, and visualizing data using cutting-edge technologies like augmented intelligence (AI), machine learning, and natural language processing (NLP) to reveal hidden patterns, correlations, and trends.
This articles explores how healthcare institutions have increasingly reaped the benefits of meaningful insights to achieve their strategic goals.
Many health systems have undertaken initiatives to pursue high-value data and analytics to produce actionable insights that drive clinical quality and operational and financial improvements.
Given the pressures health systems face, this quest to leverage data-driven insights is a noble and vital undertaking.
In response, solutions providers have developed more advanced data and analytics platforms to handle extensive and complex data sets. These data and analytics ecosystems offer a robust foundation for processing, modeling, and visualizing data, leveraging advanced technologies such as augmented intelligence (AI), machine learning, and natural language processing (NLP) to uncover hidden patterns, correlations, and trends from a standardized platform.
Healthcare organizations increasingly rely on these modern data and analytics ecosystems to derive meaningful insights while continuously refining processes and optimizing workflows. Such organizations have realized multiple benefits. The following examples illustrate the transformative impact of data-rich insights catapulted by modern data and analytics platforms.
High-Value Data and Healthcare Analytics Decreases Care Variation
Health systems face increased pressure to improve the quality of care while reducing costs, which makes unwarranted clinical variation a top improvement opportunity. Novant Health New Hanover Regional Medical Center (New Hanover), in partnership with Health Catalyst, leveraged the data and analytics platform and a comprehensive suite of applications, developing an improvement methodology based on applicable data and analytics and a comprehensive approach to identify improvement opportunities.
After devoting considerable time and effort to building its own data warehouse, New Hanover realized the need for a more flexible solution to gain actionable insights for improvements. Their aim was to systematically enhance processes and boost organizational performance, patient outcomes, and financial results, leveraging AI and prescriptive business intelligence tools to support population health initiatives and risk-based contracting.
They also devised an analytics strategy encompassing data governance and analytics enhancement for improved clinical and operational performance. The intent was to enhance payer strategies and accountable care operations while reducing care variation. This approach allowed them to establish a scalable data and analytics platform that adapted to evolving organizational needs.
In under three years, the organization achieved a $7M cost reduction, including a $5.4M reduction by reducing unwarranted clinical variation and a $1.4M reduction through improved analytics efficiency. The health system also standardized spine care, blood utilization, high-cost medication use, and the treatment of sepsis in the emergency department (ED).
Relevant Data and Analytics Drive Post-Surgery Improvements, Reducing Readmissions
Post-surgery complications following cardiovascular (CV) procedures impact patients’ lives and can impose financial burdens on healthcare organizations. WakeMed Health & Hospitals (WakeMed) recognized the potential of leveraging valuable data and analytics to minimize these complications effectively.
To achieve this, WakeMed implemented Health Catalyst’s data platform and other solutions, including a CV-enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) solution and Healthcare.AI™. Through these resources, WakeMed’s clinical leaders assessed performance, compared patient demographics and providers, and identified other opportunities for clinical advancement.
As a result, the Raleigh, North Carolina-based organization reduced direct variable costs for cardiac surgery patients by $4.5 million with the proper tools. It also achieved the lowest risk-adjusted mortality rate, 0.8 percent, among all hospitals reporting performance to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) while achieving a 38 percent relative reduction in its 30-day readmission rate.
Finding Population Health and Shared Savings Success with Healthcare Analytics
UnityPoint Health needed advanced analytics to support clinical decision-making regarding the balance between population health priorities and shared savings for its accountable care partnership.
The organization used claims and clinical data integrated into Health Catalyst’s data and analytics platform to develop a model to predict population health and financial trends. The predictive model risk-stratified patients, identifying the likelihood of inpatient admission, ED utilization, 30-day readmission, and missed outpatient appointments.
Over the past decade, leveraging robust data and population health analytics has led to an average annual shared savings of $31M at UnityPoint Health. Enhanced ED utilization was also evident, with a 40 percent relative reduction in ED visits through effective ambulatory care measures.
Healthcare Analytics Relieves Payer Authorization Pains, Drives Data-Driven Improvement
Lastly, delays in payer authorization and denials of care can lead to anxiety and frustration. Using the Health Catalyst data platform and a payer analytics application, Allina Health found it easier to visualize the workload associated with each bill and quantify the workload by payer, including trends over time.
In turn, Allina Health has lowered labor costs, increased profitability, and improved the patients’ experience. Resolving issues related to outstanding payments has also prevented the shifting of payment responsibility to patients.
As Allina Health continues to leverage data for operational decision-making, it has logged nearly 300,000 unique sessions in its analytics applications and over 160,000 unique views of reports. Notably, these efforts have contributed to more than $33M in positive margin impact through expense reduction and increased hospital revenue from in- and outpatient services.
Healthcare Analytics Investments Accelerate Outcomes Improvement
Healthcare provider organizations like these have embraced data-driven insights and have the ability to achieve strategic objectives. Through continuously tracking critical performance metrics, they can pinpoint areas for enhancement and take preemptive action to rectify them. These organizations have recognized the significance of utilizing data to inform decision-making, enhance patient care, and boost their bottom lines.
As evidenced by these case studies, the implementation of advanced technology and analytics applications has proven to enhance healthcare delivery on a large and meaningful scale.
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