Author Archives: Vignesh Eswaramoorthy

Why Interoperability is Crucial in Healthcare Operations

Data interoperability in healthcare refers to the seamless and secure exchange of patient information among different healthcare systems, providers, and organizations. The lack of interoperability can lead to fragmented data silos, making it difficult for healthcare professionals to access comprehensive patient information. This can result in inefficiencies, medical errors, and ultimately hinder the delivery of quality care.  In this article, we’ll delve into the significance of interoperability in healthcare and explore how it can streamline processes, improve patient care, and drive innovation in the industry.

According to research posted by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology concerning non-federal acute care hospitals in the U.S.:

  • Only 46% of hospitals had required patient information from outside providers or sources available electronically at the point of care.
  • 55% of hospitals named their exchange partners’ EHR systems’ lack of ability to receive data as a barrier to interoperability.
  • Only 38% of hospitals had the ability to use or integrate healthcare data from outside sources into their own EHRs without manual entry.

What is Interoperability in Healthcare?

Interoperability in healthcare refers to the ability of different healthcare information systems, devices, and software applications to seamlessly exchange and use patient data. This data can encompass a wide range of information, from electronic health records (EHRs) and diagnostic results to medication lists and treatment plans.

Interoperability ensures that healthcare providers, including hospitals, clinics, and physicians, can access and share patient data efficiently, securely, and in a format that is understandable by all systems involved. This capability allows for improved communication and coordination among healthcare providers, leading to better patient care.

The Importance of Interoperability in Healthcare

  • Enhanced Patient Care

At the heart of healthcare operations lies patient care. Interoperability directly impacts the quality and efficiency of patient care by enabling healthcare providers to access comprehensive and up-to-date patient information. When a physician has access to a patient’s complete medical history, including previous diagnoses, allergies, and medications, they can make more informed decisions about treatment options, ultimately leading to better outcomes.

  • Reduced Errors

One of the most significant benefits of interoperability is the reduction in medical errors. With seamless data sharing, healthcare providers can avoid duplication of tests and procedures, ensuring that patients receive the right care at the right time. Moreover, accurate and complete patient records reduce the risk of medication errors, allergic reactions, and other potential harm to patients.

  • Improved Efficiency

Interoperability streamlines administrative processes in healthcare. Tasks that once required manual data entry and paperwork, such as referrals, authorizations, and billing, can now be automated through interoperable systems. This not only reduces administrative burden but also accelerates the overall healthcare process, allowing providers to focus more on patient care.

  • Cost Savings

By eliminating redundant tests and procedures, reducing administrative overhead, and preventing errors, interoperability can lead to significant cost savings in healthcare. It helps lower healthcare costs for both providers and patients, making healthcare more accessible and affordable.

  • Facilitating Research and Innovation

Interoperability is the backbone of healthcare research and innovation. When researchers and healthcare organizations can access a vast pool of anonymized patient data, they can identify trends, study disease patterns, and develop new treatments more effectively. This has the potential to drive groundbreaking discoveries and advancements in healthcare.

Challenges and Barriers to Interoperability

While the benefits of interoperability in healthcare are clear, achieving seamless data exchange is not without its challenges. Several barriers hinder its widespread adoption:

Technical Heterogeneity: Healthcare systems use a variety of different technologies and standards for data storage and transmission. Achieving interoperability often requires bridging the gap between these disparate systems.

Privacy and Security Concerns: The sensitive nature of patient data raises concerns about privacy and security. Healthcare organizations must implement robust security measures and comply with regulations like HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) to protect patient information.

Resistance to Change: Implementing interoperable systems requires a change in processes and workflows, which can face resistance from healthcare providers and organizations accustomed to traditional practices.

Funding and Investment: The initial investment required to implement interoperable systems can be significant. Smaller healthcare providers may struggle to allocate the necessary resources.

Regulatory and Legal Challenges: Compliance with various state and federal regulations can be complex and time-consuming. Healthcare organizations must navigate a complex regulatory landscape to ensure data sharing is done legally and ethically.

In a 2018 survey of U.S. health system executives and finance leaders, “52% said that data sharing is the technology that will have the biggest positive impact on the patient experience.”

Future Trends and Solutions

Despite the challenges, the push for interoperability in healthcare continues to gain momentum. Several trends and solutions are emerging to address these challenges and drive the adoption of interoperable systems:

Standardization: The development and adoption of standardized data formats and protocols, such as Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR), are simplifying data exchange between systems.

Data Exchange Networks: Health information exchanges (HIEs) and regional data exchange networks can facilitate data sharing among healthcare organizations within a defined geographic area.

Patient Empowerment: Patients are gaining more control over their health data through patient portals and mobile apps, allowing them to share their information with different healthcare providers.

Cloud-Based Solutions: Cloud computing offers scalable and cost-effective solutions for healthcare data storage and exchange, making interoperability more accessible to smaller providers. 

HealthViewX: The Solution to Data Interoperability

The HealthViewX platform is emerging as a powerful solution to overcome the data interoperability challenge in healthcare operations. HealthViewX’s proprietary Interoperability Engine, HealthBridge, is designed to bridge the data interoperability gap and streamline healthcare operations. HealthBridge enables end-to-end care orchestration with bi-directional health information system integrations such as EMR/EHRs, HMS, PHMS, LIS, etc. HealthBridge has the ability to communicate the data between multiple health systems seamlessly and it supports API, HL7 v2, JSON, XML, FHIR (DSTU2 and R4), and custom integrations (DB, File-based) format. Here’s how it overcomes the challenges:

Aggregation of Data: HealthViewX can aggregate data from various sources, including EHRs, labs, and other healthcare systems, into a unified and standardized format.

Secure Data Exchange: The platform ensures robust security and compliance with regulations like HIPAA to protect patient data during exchange.

Standardization: HealthViewX employs standardized data formats, such as Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR), to facilitate seamless data exchange.

Compliance Management: The platform simplifies compliance management by automating the process of adhering to healthcare regulations, reducing the administrative burden.

Integration of Legacy Systems: HealthViewX is compatible with legacy systems and can bridge the technological gap, making it accessible to healthcare organizations with older infrastructure.

Benefits of HealthViewX in Healthcare Operations:

The HealthViewX platform brings about a range of benefits that transform healthcare operations,

Efficiency: By aggregating data and simplifying data exchange, HealthViewX reduces administrative overhead, streamlines workflows, and enhances overall operational efficiency.

Enhanced Patient Care: Healthcare providers can access comprehensive and up-to-date patient information, improving decision-making and ultimately delivering better patient care.

Reduced Errors: The platform reduces the risk of medical errors by ensuring accurate and complete patient records, ultimately enhancing patient safety.

Cost Savings: With efficient data sharing and reduced administrative costs, healthcare organizations can achieve significant cost savings.

Innovation: HealthViewX’s data exchange capabilities facilitate research and innovation by providing access to a wealth of anonymized patient data, enabling groundbreaking discoveries in healthcare.

Improved Patient Experience: Patients benefit from faster and more efficient healthcare services, with the ability to share their data easily with various healthcare providers.

Blockchain Technology: Blockchain is being explored as a secure and transparent way to store and exchange healthcare data, addressing privacy and security concerns.

Conclusion

Interoperability is not just a technical requirement in healthcare; it’s a critical component that can transform the way healthcare is delivered. The achievement of data interoperability is paramount to delivering high-quality care, reducing errors, and enhancing efficiency. While challenges remain, ongoing efforts to standardize data formats, address privacy concerns, and empower patients are driving the healthcare industry closer to a future where seamless data exchange is the norm. 

HealthViewX emerges as a comprehensive solution to the data interoperability challenge, enabling healthcare organizations to overcome the hurdles and revolutionize healthcare operations. By aggregating data, ensuring secure data exchange, and simplifying compliance management, HealthViewX is not just a platform but a catalyst for positive change in healthcare. It empowers healthcare providers to deliver the best possible care and ensures that patients receive the attention and treatment they deserve, ultimately leading to a healthier and more connected healthcare ecosystem. As healthcare providers and organizations continue to embrace interoperability, patients will benefit from safer, more efficient, and more cost-effective healthcare services.

Medicare CCM Program: How HealthViewX Makes a Difference

Chronic illnesses, such as diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease, pose a significant healthcare challenge. Managing these conditions effectively requires ongoing care and coordination. To address this, the Medicare Chronic Care Management (CCM) program was introduced to provide comprehensive care for patients with multiple chronic diseases. It is a valuable initiative that aims to provide better care, reduce healthcare costs, and enhance the quality of life for individuals with complex health needs.

The CCM program not only provides better care for patients with chronic conditions but also offers healthcare providers an opportunity to improve their revenue streams. Under this program, healthcare providers are reimbursed for offering non-face-to-face care coordination services to eligible Medicare beneficiaries. 

However, delivering CCM services profitably can be challenging without the right tools and technologies. In this article, we explore how HealthViewX, a care orchestration technology platform, empowers clinicians to deliver CCM services profitably, all while enhancing patient care.

The Profitability Challenge

While the Medicare CCM program presents a unique revenue opportunity for clinicians, it also comes with its challenges. To deliver CCM services profitably, clinicians must navigate a range of complexities, including administrative tasks, data security compliance, managing care team and patient engagement. This can be daunting, time-consuming, and costly without the right support.

How HealthViewX Empowers Clinicians

HealthViewX is a transformative healthcare technology platform that offers a suite of features designed to streamline and optimize the delivery of CCM services. The platform capabilities empower healthcare providers to deliver more effective and personalized care to patients with chronic conditions, ultimately leading to better health outcomes. Here’s how HealthViewX helps clinicians deliver the CCM service profitably:

Automated Administrative Tasks: HealthViewX platform empowers clinicians to identify eligible patients, enhance patient enrollment process, create personalized care plans, capture and document accurate time spent with patients by tracking calls & emails. This automation reduces the time and effort required for administrative tasks, allowing clinicians to focus on patient care.

Care Coordination at Its Best: HealthViewX excels in care coordination, which is fundamental to the success of Medicare CCM. The platform streamlines communication among care team members and this synergy ensures that all parties involved in a patient’s care are on the same page, leading to more effective treatment plans and improved patient outcomes. Engaged patients are more likely to adhere to treatment plans, make healthier lifestyle choices, and actively participate in their own care.

Care Plan Customization: HealthViewX has got over 86 pre-defined care plan templates based on various conditions that helps clinicians to create personalized care plans tailored to each patient’s unique needs. This not only improves patient outcomes but also increases patient satisfaction, leading to better retention and profitability.

Targeting High-Risk Patients: Not all patients with chronic conditions have the same level of risk. HealthViewX employs risk stratification algorithms to identify high-risk individuals who require more intensive care management. By focusing resources on those who need it most, healthcare providers can allocate their resources and efforts effectively for improved outcomes.

Billing and Documentation: Billing and documentation are essential aspects of Medicare CCM. The platform simplifies billing and documentation processes, ensuring that clinicians efficiently document patient interactions and maximize their reimbursements for CCM services. It helps clinicians avoid revenue loss due to incomplete or inaccurate billing. It also lets providers generate billing reports based on CMS guidelines for guaranteed reimbursement. 

Secure Patient Data: HealthViewX prioritizes the security and privacy of patient data, ensuring that sensitive health information remains protected. Compliance with data security standards is critical to maintaining trust with patients and regulatory authorities.

Analytics and Reporting: HealthViewX offers robust data analytics tools that enable healthcare providers to track the performance of their CCM services and patient outcomes over time. By analyzing trends and patterns in patient data, providers can make informed decisions and adjust care plans as needed. This data-driven approach promotes evidence-based care, continuous improvement and increased profitably.

Cost Savings: By automating administrative tasks, reducing non-compliance risks, and improving patient engagement, HealthViewX ultimately saves clinicians time and resources, contributing to increased profitability.

Conclusion

Medicare’s Chronic Care Management program was introduced to help manage the health and well-being of beneficiaries with multiple chronic conditions. The Medicare CCM program is a unique opportunity for clinicians to provide better care for patients with chronic conditions and boost their practice’s revenue. By automating administrative tasks, ensuring regulatory compliance, enhancing patient engagement, and optimizing billing, HealthViewX emerges as a game-changing solution that empowers clinicians to achieve profitable outcomes while delivering high-quality care. As the healthcare landscape continues to evolve, technology solutions like HealthViewX will be instrumental in transforming healthcare practices, and also in making the CCM program more accessible and profitable for clinicians.

Virtually Perfect

Some might believe that the COVID ‘19 pandemic was the harbinger of a heightened digital health wave, while others might believe that the pandemic simply hastened the process of its evolution and adoption. I, for one, stand by the latter. The Digital Health market size was around US$ 195.1 billion in 2021, and is estimated to substantially grow to around US$ 780.05 billion by 2030¹. The spending on digital healthcare solutions is estimated to reach US$ 244 billion by 2025². Digital Health companies have been slowly simmering, brewing, adapting, and growing, and have seized the market when the time was ripe. 

When the pandemic necessitated the need for mitigation amidst disruption and chaos, Health Technology companies were ready to offer mature plug and play solutions that made adoption seamless and imperative. Furthermore, several countries quickly recognized the need to alter privacy policies and data protection regulations to enable remote consultations and virtual health interventions³. This was propelled by the paucity of physical resources, and coupled with an alarming need for accessible, quality healthcare. But more importantly, there was a stark realization and label for a new type of care delivery that need not be in-person- virtually, virtual.

Objectively, virtual care could be segmented into care that makes you get better, and care that makes you stay better…alternatively, curative and preventive. While the former milked patient care during the need of the hour, the latter emerged a new, unsung hero; An unexploited solution to a global, age-old opportunity. Center for Medicare/Medicaid Services’ (CMS) intent to incentivize increased and improved care management could/can take swift flight upon the wings of software platforms like that of HealthViewX. Solutions like Remote Physiological Monitoring (RPM), Transitional Care Management (TCM), Chronic Care Management (CCM), amongst others, help care teams monitor, manage, and engage patients right from their homes. This in turn has shown to reduce costs and readmissions, mitigate risk, improve outcomes and increase  reimbursements⁴. A win-win-win!?

But, hold up! While all this sounds rosy and convenient, I have wondered whether there has/had been resistance in adoption amongst clinicians and patients…the end-users, ultimately. I stumbled upon an enlightening adapted strategy matrix in an article by Ande De. In a matrix outlining the degree of change behavior needed from clinicians, versus the degree of patients’ resistance to adopting new technology, TeleHealth, RPM and COVID screening, response and monitoring, emerged the most victorious with the least resistance from both stakeholders⁴. While cloud based web portals and health applications that record patient data were met with some resistance, it was a pleasant surprise to note that there were no digital health ‘failures,’ that were met with high resistance⁴. The data also shows that Artificial Intelligence (AI), Prescriptive and Predictive Analytics are here for the ‘long haul,’ being met with high resistance amongst clinicians and low resistance amongst patients⁴…all predictable, yet surprising at the same time!

While there could be several intuitive, understandable reasons for resistance, I’m compelled to boil it down to,

  1. Change Management:

    Willingness to embrace change and make the time to familiarize with change. Technological evolution brings up several unknowns, largely in terms of whom to involve, when and how. While internally developed digital health infrastructure might make these unknowns less murky, it is unlikely that health systems have the time, resources and bandwidth to constantly troubleshoot and upgrade. While this drawback is moot with third party digital health vendors, there arises challenges with seamless interoperability, integration and complete customization to the needs of the organization.
    Encouragingly, a growing number of companies like HealthViewX are attempting to address these issues at the grassroot level. The platform entails seamless integration with a home grown interoperability engine, and the ability to completely customize the platform.

  2. Liability:

    Fear of and risks associated with the unknown. Several clinicians may not be sufficiently trained in using digital tools, alongside issues with seamless integrations… thereby resulting in potential medical malpractices and associated legal claims. There are several open-ended concerns- are these malpractice claims attributed to the clinician, to the technology, or to those responsible for training⁵? Is there a clear, established, legal norm/protocol for how care via digital tools needs to be rendered and documented⁵? Most importantly, is confidential patient data safe and secure?
    In a survey conducted amongst 242 clinicians in Pakistan, 69% ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ with the sentiment that there is a lack of regulation to avoid medical malpractice. Only 29% believed that their medical indemnity would cover telehealth consultations. Another study discovered that clinicians were less confident about prescribing controlled medications via TeleHealth.
    On the other side of the coin, studies have shown that several malpractices, misdiagnosis or errors could have been avoided with the intervention of AI and digital health. This is with the help of real-time alerts, diagnostic decision support, tracking, reporting, etc. Increasingly, laws have been restructured to exonerate AI/digital health in the face of mishaps, under several circumstances.

  3. Proof:

    A natural barrier to adoption in general is a lack of evidence based outcomes. The advent of Digital Health solutions might not be mature enough to present a historic laundry list of troubleshooting and adaptability to the constantly evolving needs of users. However, the more external digital health solutions are adopted by health entities, the more their counterparts have a track record to witness and to pine for.
    A valuable metric rests in the achievement of the Quadruple Aim, i.e., focusing on Population Health, enhancing the experiences of end-users, and of care providers/clinical staff, and reducing the per-capita cost of health care⁶. There are several intangible outcomes such as, provider burnout, time saved, patient outcomes, and patient satisfaction. Externally developed tools also often provide case studies or scientific evidence displaying their meaningful outcomes.

  4. Access:

    While digital health has redefined care with a click of a button, socio-demographic barriers to access could result in health disparities and a digital divide. This could be segregated into a technological barrier (such as, lack of smart devices and internet connection, the prevalence of digital health in their region/community) and, a digital literacy barrier involving the ease of use of technology depending on age, literacy, income and tech-savviness, etc.
    While the digital divide can be narrowed by subsidizing the inherent cost of access, and perhaps by installing public access kiosks, ultimately, the utopian vision should be to extend beyond digital literacy to digital mastery and autonomy⁷. 

My presumptuous, yet sagacious retort to these four points is, Time. 

Time to be moved. Time to take the plunge. Time to embrace. Time to get and assess outcomes. Time to advance. Time to revolutionize. 

Time to become Virtually perfect. 

References:

  1. “Digital Health Market Size Will Attain USD 780.05 Billion by 2030 Growing at 16.1% CAGR – Exclusive Report by Facts & Factors,” February 2023, Facts and Factors, https://www.globenewswire.com/en/news-release/2023/02/01/2599148/0/en/Digital-Health-Market-Size-Will-Attain-USD-780-05-Billion-by-2030-Growing-at-16-1-CAGR-Exclusive-Report-by-Facts-Factors.html
  2. “The Use of Digital Healthcare Platforms During the COVID-19 Pandemic: the Consumer Perspective,” Alharbi. F, March 2021, PMC, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8116074/
  3. “Digital health and care in pandemic times: impact of COVID-19,” Peek. N, Sujan. M, Scott. P, 2020, BMJ Journals, https://informatics.bmj.com/content/27/1/e100166
  4. Degree of adoption diagram, “Five ways Digital Health Innovation will grow + evolve post pandemic,” Ande De, April 2020, Alteryx, https://www.alteryx.com/input/blog/5-ways-digital-health-innovation-will-grow-evolve-post-pandemic
  5. Digital health technology-specific risks for medical malpractice liability” S. Rowland, E. Fitzgerald, et al, October 2022, https://www.nature.com/articles/s41746-022-00698-3
  6. “Assessing the impact of digital transformation of health services,” EXPERT PANEL ON EFFECTIVE WAYS OF INVESTING IN HEALTH , Barros, P et al, November 2018, https://health.ec.europa.eu/system/files/2019-11/022_digitaltransformation_en_0.pdf
  7. The Digital Determinants Of Health: How To Narrow The Gap,” K. VIgilante, Feb 2023, https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2023/02/02/the-digital-determinants-of-health-how-to-narrow-the-gap/?sh=384def8c59ba

Technology companies are proving to be the great equalizer

[Part 1 of a 12-Part Series]

Healthcare is rife with significant challenges that can in some cases be minimized at the very minimum and in most cases be eliminated by the use of technology. The 12-part series begins by elaborating on macro level challenges that the healthcare industry is starting to address with technology to stem the bleeding/reverse the onset of more severe complications.

Challenge 1: Supply and demand

Healthcare service delivery provisioning across the globe is starkly marked by the lack of adequate supply of qualified clinicians and specialists. This situation has been significantly exacerbated in the post pandemic new normal which has seen clinicians of all stripes leave their stated professions in droves. Technology companies like HealthViewX have helped alleviate this problem by building care orchestration platforms [the HOPE platform for providers and the POPE platform for payors] that allow clinicians and clinical service delivery providers the ability to render care to more patients by streamlining and automating work processes. These platforms allow patients’ access to clinicians and services that are not limited or constrained by physical locations and boundaries.

Challenge 2: Variation in care

Healthcare outcomes see sigma levels of variation as a direct consequence of the variation in care delivery. A fundamental challenge to addressing such variation in care stems from the lack of contextualized data around care encounters including clear data attribution, capture appropriateness and integrity of the measurement system (repeatability and reproducibility). Care orchestration tech platforms are designed to capture data during a care encounter that can them be analyzed across a host of attributes for clinical and operational streamlining of services. HOPE for example is capable of gathering millions of individual data points that can be aggregated and analyzed at both the patient and population level to see patterns and probabilities. This is then turned into actionable insights.

Challenge 3: Evolving consumerization

Consumer expectations around Healthcare service delivery in the new normal has permanently evolved from begrudging acceptance of the confines of large monolithic infrastructure driven points of care to a strident demand for care around their individual ecosystem. In short the uberization of the healthcare except at scale. Healthcare however thus far has been severely constrained by its business model in that it has required a significant upfront investment in infrastructure followed by a significant lead time before the return of investment is reached. Technology has become the bridge to serving the new discerning consumer that will not settle for pre digital limitations of an industry that still uses fax machines and paper. Care platforms again come to the rescue by helping construct intersecting digital hubs that enable the patient to have a digital ecosystem built to his or her preferences. These digital hubs are being built at scale on a disease specific level that lend themselves to cohort level and individual specific management and reversal of disease progression.

Challenge 4: Illiquidity of data

One of the biggest challenges is the pooling of an individual’s healthcare data across islands of service delivery. This is exacerbated by the fact that the quantum of data over a life time can be in orders of magnitude and is unfortunately not available in a continuum of care/longitudinal fashion. This illiquidity is however being solved by care orchestration platforms like HOPE and POPE that address both the interoperability problem by building engines that serve as bridges between these islands of data that are linked through technology as well as building out a new care plan centered approach that is defined by and around each patient by his or her care team.

HEDIS: Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set

HEDIS is a set of performance measures that are used to compare health plan performance and measure the quality of health plans. These measures were created by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA). About 90% of health plans use HEDIS as a standard to measure the performance of their plan. The data is tracked from year to year to measure the performance of the health plan and thus provides information regarding the population served.

The data that is collected is used to monitor the health of the general population, evaluate treatment outcomes, etc., and the data is collected through administrative, hybrid, and survey methods.

HEDIS Measure Domains:

About 95 HEDIS measures are categorized under the following six “domains of care”.

Effectiveness of Care

  • Controlling High Blood Pressure
  • Care for Older Adults 
  • Haemoglobin A1c Control for Patients With Diabetes 
  • Blood Pressure Control for Patients With Diabetes
  • Eye Exam for Patients With Diabetes
  • Breast Cancer Screening
  • Colorectal Cancer Screening

Access/Availability of Care

  • Adults’ Access to Preventive/Ambulatory Health Services
  • Utilization and Risk Adjusted Utilization.

Experience of Care (CAHPS) 

  • CAHPS Health Plan Survey 5.1H, Adult Version
  • Utilization and Risk Adjusted Utilization

Utilization and Risk-adjusted Utilization 

  • Well-Child Visits in the First 30 Months of Life
  • Child and Adolescent Well-Care Visits

Health Plan Descriptive Information

  • Language Diversity of Membership
  • Utilization and Risk Adjusted Utilization

Measures Collected Using Electronic Clinical Data Systems

  • Childhood Immunization Status
  • Breast Cancer Screening
  • Depression Screening and Follow-Up for Adolescents and Adults

How is data collected for HEDIS?

Health plans collect and report performance data about specific services and types of care to NCQA. NCQA rates health insurance based on 90-plus measures.

HEDIS data is collected through three methods: 

  1. Administrative data: Data collected from office visits, hospitalizations, and pharmacy data
  2. Hybrid data: It’s a combination of administrative data from claims as well as from patient’s medical records 
  3. Survey data: This is data collected through survey questionnaires from members.

Why do HEDIS scores matter?

HEDIS scores are critical for health care planning. HEDIS scores help payers understand the quality of care their members receive for chronic and acute conditions. The better the score, the more effectively the payer competes with other payers in the market.

Benefits of HEDIS measures:

  • It helps health plans assess the quality and variance of health care provided to enrollees.
  • It determines how the plan is best for chronic disease management and preventive care. 
  • The use of preventive screening measures helps to improve patient outcomes and reduce healthcare costs
  • Quality interventions are based on closing gaps in care and expanding preventive services such as vaccinations, pap smears, mammograms, and treatment for hypertension or cholesterol.
  • Star ratings enable providers to measure the success of their improvement initiatives

Effects of HEDIS on Reimbursement:

CMS has directly tied reimbursement of medical costs to patient outcomes. As a result, health insurance providers face the challenge of bridging coverage gaps and improving quality. By focusing on quality results, members can maximize their benefits and ultimately make better use of limited resources. 

HEDIS is recognized as the highest standard of reimbursement by health care providers and payers. Health care plans take HEDIS tests and quality measures seriously because they know that money is at stake. Leaders need to be more aware of the importance of organizations continuing to engage in all quality improvement activities.

Ultimately, CMS penalizes health plans if they underperform for more than three years. HEDIS as a whole is changing the company’s understanding of the importance of measuring quality, a fundamental concept underlying performance-related quality initiatives.

Effects of HEDIS on gaps in care

HEDIS measures can help identify gaps in care for participants who have not been screened for breast cancer or who have not been vaccinated against HPV. This can affect your quality score. Improving Star and HEDIS performance requires closing the gap. These gaps can be filled by reaching these participants through home testing kits, home health care, and screening visits.

Why is HEDIS important to providers?

  • Ensure timely and appropriate care for their patients.
  • Help identify and address gaps in patient care.
  • As HEDIS rates rise, providers are able to capture maximum or additional revenue through a pay-for-quality, value-based service, and pay-for-performance model. 

Why is HEDIS important to payers?

  • HEDIS scores help health plans understand the quality of care provided to people with chronic and acute conditions. 
  • Helps identify gaps in health network performance and care delivery 
  • Helps improve patient outcomes and reduce care costs through preventive services 
  • HEDIS identifies public health impacts such as heart diseases, cancer, smoking, and asthma which provides useful data on health issues. 
  • Care is provided to help identify and treat at-risk groups who have not completed immunizations, dental care, screenings, etc.

NCQA Health Plan Rating vs Medicare Star Ratings:

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) uses a five-star rating system to rate how well Medicare Advantage (MA) health plans (Parts C and D) and providers serve their members. Assessment results are based on the implementation of the plan, the quality of care provided, and customer service. Ratings range from 1 to 5 stars. 5 is the highest score for excellent performance, and 1 is the lowest score for poor performance.

Both the NCQA Health Plan Rating (HPR) and the Medicare Star Rating are used to assess health insurance quality and performance, and both rate and report plan performance. The goal of HPR and star ratings is to provide the plan with a metric to assess its current operational status. This allows us to ensure the quality of our plans so that consumers can choose a quality health plan that meets their needs.

HEDIS and Star ratings are important because they represent the effectiveness of patient care provided by healthcare organizations, and HEDIS and Star ratings decrease when there are gaps in care. Another reason HEDIS and Stars need to maintain high ratings is for reimbursement purposes. Healthcare organizations with a lower rating are not eligible for bonus payments and are subject to fines.

Understanding the Importance of Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS) for Healthcare Providers

Healthcare providers often face the challenge of identifying whether their services and interventions are producing the desired outcomes. In this regard, healthcare effectiveness data and information set (HEDIS) is a valuable tool that is used to measure how well healthcare providers are meeting the needs of their patients. HEDIS is widely used by insurers to measure the quality of care delivered by healthcare providers. This blog post will provide an overview of what HEDIS is, its importance, and how healthcare providers can use it to improve patient care.

What is HEDIS?

HEDIS is a set of standardized performance measures that healthcare providers use to assess the quality of care provided to their patients. It was created by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) and is used by health plans, employers, and other healthcare organizations to measure performance in different areas of healthcare delivery. Some of the areas that HEDIS measures focus on include preventive care, chronic disease management, behavioral health, and patient safety.

How is HEDIS Used?

HEDIS is used in a variety of ways. Health plans use HEDIS to evaluate the quality of care provided by healthcare providers and to benchmark their performance against other health plans. Employers use HEDIS to assess the overall performance of their health benefits programs. Healthcare providers use HEDIS to identify areas of improvement in their healthcare delivery and to improve their processes, ultimately leading to better patient outcomes.

Why is HEDIS Important?

HEDIS is important because it allows healthcare providers to measure the effectiveness of their healthcare interventions on patient care outcomes. It is a tool that supports measurement-based care, which is essential for improving the quality of care provided to patients. HEDIS provides a standardized framework that enables healthcare providers to compare their performance to other providers and identify areas for improvement. It is also important for healthcare providers to monitor HEDIS measures to meet regulatory requirements.

How Healthcare Providers Can Use HEDIS to Improve Patient Care?

Healthcare providers can use HEDIS to identify areas of care where they may not be meeting the standards of care or may not be doing well compared to their peers. They can then analyze the reasons for the gaps in quality and implement changes to address them. For instance, if HEDIS measures indicate that there is a gap in preventive care interventions, healthcare providers can allocate resources to improve their preventive care programs. By using HEDIS measures to improve their healthcare delivery, healthcare providers can enhance patient outcomes and reduce healthcare costs.

Conclusion

In conclusion, HEDIS is an essential tool for healthcare providers that helps them quantify and measure the quality of care they provide. Understanding and utilizing HEDIS measures can lead to improved processes, better patient outcomes, and cost savings. By leveraging the insights gained from HEDIS, healthcare providers can develop and implement interventions that address gaps in care and ultimately improve their service delivery.