Dr. Jay Parker, Brooklyn New Jersey, 32, gets it!
""Hello Health," the Brooklyn-based primary care practice that is fast becoming an emblem of modern medicine. A paperless, concierge practice that eschews the limitations of insurance-based medicine, Hello Health is popular and successful, largely because of the powerful and cost-effective communication tools it employs: Web-based social media."
Healthcare is lightyears away from utilizing technology and therefore lightyears away from meeting the increasing needs of most patients for real time access and information to manage their own healthcare.
( See article in Health Affairs http://content.healthaffairs.org/cgi/content/full/28/2/361) We are not talking big mainframe, CDs of images that have to be signed out and picked up, but real time use of social networking and online information, video and email.
Insurance needs to wake up to the benefits of paying for social networking communication between providers and patients and maybe even between providers....incentivize the effective and cost effective behaviors you want to see to save resources? Now theres a concept! Are you using social networking for your medical staff to communicate with each other and you?
Friday, March 27, 2009
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
How involved are your associates? Case Study: Boston employee forums
I have to admit to being very impressed not by the CEO's town forums as reported in the blog "running a hospital", since all of us have those events to keep people informed, but by the response from associates to problem solving during this economic crisis. It was really impressive and I think each hospital executive could find the same themes running through their organizations - unselfish, and practical. The blog: http://runningahospital.blogspot.com/2009/03/town-meetings-bidmc.html has comments from employees on how to cut costs and what they would forego to keep other people's jobs. It really harkens back to the HBR article that layoffs may not be good for the organization and leaders need to look deeper. The folks in Boston did that and looked directly to their employees for support. No matter what the outcome, the process seems excellent. Not naive, but good business.
So how involved are your associates? Do they have a hospital blog that is a vehicle for them to be part of the process? Do you have resources dedicated to it?
So how involved are your associates? Do they have a hospital blog that is a vehicle for them to be part of the process? Do you have resources dedicated to it?
“We’re a high-volume, low-cost company,” Marcus Osborne, who works in health-care business development for the company, told NYT.
“And I would argue that mentality is sorely lacking in the health-care industry.”
So goes the announcement by Walmart of its plans to get into the Health IT business by targeting small doctor practices and keeping the costs very close to the incentive built into the Obama stimulus plan.
Full story WSJ: http://blogs.wsj.com/health/2009/03/11/wal-mart-to-sell-electronic-medical-records-to-doctors/
The comment that healthcare rarely commoditizes its products in a way to really go after the low cost niche seems to ring very true. How much is this a demand issue versus a supply issue? Even without incentive money out there this seems to be a need that goes largely ignored... and contributes to the impression of leadership voids in healthcare. Leaders demanding these products and setting the low cost parameters could come from healthcare...and as the dollars are conserved on the hospital side in Medicare to the tune of $139 billion, isn't it about time, we led the charge. Where are associations on the issue of cost of product? Do purchasing groups provide adequate leadership on this issue?
So goes the announcement by Walmart of its plans to get into the Health IT business by targeting small doctor practices and keeping the costs very close to the incentive built into the Obama stimulus plan.
Full story WSJ: http://blogs.wsj.com/health/2009/03/11/wal-mart-to-sell-electronic-medical-records-to-doctors/
The comment that healthcare rarely commoditizes its products in a way to really go after the low cost niche seems to ring very true. How much is this a demand issue versus a supply issue? Even without incentive money out there this seems to be a need that goes largely ignored... and contributes to the impression of leadership voids in healthcare. Leaders demanding these products and setting the low cost parameters could come from healthcare...and as the dollars are conserved on the hospital side in Medicare to the tune of $139 billion, isn't it about time, we led the charge. Where are associations on the issue of cost of product? Do purchasing groups provide adequate leadership on this issue?
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Not surprising
Half of nation's hospitals running losses
Many plan to cut services and staff as investment returns worsen and paying admissions decline, research shows.
By Lisa Girion http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-hospitals2-2009mar02,0,3182541.story
The LA times reports that over 50% of hospitals are running losses as investment income plummets and paying activity shrinks.
"Forty-four percent of hospitals have seen declines in surgeries, with hip procedures showing the steepest drop-off at 45%, according to another new survey. As a result, 47% of the hospitals surveyed expect to make staff cuts, and 69% plan to cancel or delay equipment purchases, according to the survey by Novation, a company that manages supplier contracts for hospitals".
Many plan to cut services and staff as investment returns worsen and paying admissions decline, research shows.
By Lisa Girion http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-hospitals2-2009mar02,0,3182541.story
The LA times reports that over 50% of hospitals are running losses as investment income plummets and paying activity shrinks.
"Forty-four percent of hospitals have seen declines in surgeries, with hip procedures showing the steepest drop-off at 45%, according to another new survey. As a result, 47% of the hospitals surveyed expect to make staff cuts, and 69% plan to cancel or delay equipment purchases, according to the survey by Novation, a company that manages supplier contracts for hospitals".
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