Take a crash course in post-acute data and network management best practices for Hospitals and ACOs.
All stakeholders in a collaborative or network need to work as partners and use data to speak a common language concerning performance and goals. This means that there are a lot of people along the care continuum relying on the data selected to be reliable, relatable and easily accessible. In a recent MedCity News article, author Josh Patten puts it in more direct terms: stakeholders need good data to effectively manage risk.
In 2020, ACOs will want to examine their IT systems to ensure that they are providing the insight needed to support participating providers in achieving improved performance. This visibility into quality and cost metrics is mandatory when embracing greater risk. The ACO must be able to identify negative trends and correct them early to protect their shared savings or value-based care payment and improve patient outcomes. [Source]
Before you get started on a post-acute network management strategy, take a refresher course on post-acute data sources and network management best practices.
Post-Acute Data Sources – What’s the Diff?
There are several post-acute data sources that hospitals and ACOs can rely on to manage stakeholders in their continuum. These include: Claims Data, MDS Data, CMS Data (Five-Star), and Self-Reported Data. That’s a lot of data! To avoid getting overwhelmed, it’s important to understand which data can tell you where you’ve been, and which data sources can be relied on to make decisions for the future. What is the age of the data and is it standardized? Not all data sources are the same.
[Psssst! All these data sources are reviewed in our eBook Defining Post Acute Analytics for ACOs and Health Systems. ]
Benefits of a Data-Driven Collaborative
It’s important to remind ourselves why we’re chasing all this data in the first place. Communication via a common language – that’s what data can bring to network management. What are some of the benefits of relying on post-acute data to drive your collaborative?
- Quality-focused collaborative centered on patient experience
- Improved patient outcomes with reduced care costs
- Standardized and shared best practices across systems
- Enhanced problem solving and collective navigation within today’s healthcare landscape
Post-Acute Network Management in 3 Steps
The best way to tackle a big task like post-acute network development and management is to break it into steps or phases. In the first phase, you do what all of us facing mountains of data do – you decide which data you should be looking at and relying on for forward motion. In the second phase, you get to know the “personality” of your portfolio – strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats – yes, the good old SWOT analysis! Finally, in phase 3, you’re ready to enact change in a meaningful way and you know exactly how that change can be measured. Rinse and repeat.
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