Making Sense of Weak Signals:
Health-Care Systems Can Break the Code
Following the bombing of Pearl Harbor, many Americans wondered how it was possible for the
enemy to attack us on our soil. How did the Japanese military “sneak” into our airspace and kill
and injure so many citizens and military personnel?
There were signs, or signals. But they were considered weak. Signals included a cablegram from
the U.S. ambassador to Japan to the State Department in January 1941, telling of a report that
“Japanese military forces planned to attempt a surprise mass attack on Pearl Harbor.”
Unfortunately, it was dismissed as a wild rumor.
And just one of many other signals: that same year, U.S. military commanders periodically
advised commanders in Hawaii, the Philippines, Alaska and the Panama Canal Zone of indications
that the Japanese would soon attack U.S. interests in the Pacific. Again, the signal was ignored.
Governor Michael O. Leavitt
Chairman & Founder, Leavitt Partners
And the rest is history.
Michael Leavitt, former governor of Utah, kicked off a recent webinar called, “Health-care Reform: Adjusting and Responding
to Risk in a Fee-for-Value World” with these anecdotes. He said there are many signals, weak or not, that the move to value
payment from volume payment is coming—and it will be the most significant change in U.S. health care since the widespread
adoption of health insurance.
So how can a health-care facility or system survive—even flourish—in a fee-for-value world? First and foremost, changing
your model of health care from hospital-centric to one with the patient at the center is key.
In addition, focusing on five areas will help your organization to be well on its way to flourishing in a fee-for-value world,
according to Ensocare CEO Wayne Sensor, who co-presented with Gov. Leavitt.
1. A foundational IT platform.
Without digital foundations, there is little hope of achieving better patient outcomes. The necessary foundations include
an EMR; an understanding of the populations that are served; data analytics; and cost accounting. Sensor said that while
cost accounting might seem odd on this list, accountants can tell you what it costs to provide a good service. And we
need to have a line of clarity around what it costs us to provide care to our patients.
2. A fundamental change in the way care is provided.
Change is rarely easy, but change of this magnitude is extremely difficult. All the more reason it’s imperative that hospital
and health system leadership have the courage to address the issue.
About Wayne Sensor
Wayne offers his visionary insights from the lens of a life-long career in health-care leadership as the CEO of
a 10-hospital system in the Midwest. As a senior advisor at Leavitt Partners, he gained a deep public policy
view of the industry while advising large health systems. Passionately driven by his own ailing mother’s
challenging discharge, Wayne understands the urgency to improve patient care coordination across the
health-care continuum.
Hear more from Wayne by following his blog at blog.ensocare.com.
Learn more at www.ensocare.com.
Continued on reverse
In the near future, health care will invariably need to focus more on prevention, along with the three W’s: who provides
care, when and where. For example, what are doctors doing that allied health professionals could do at a lesser rate?
E-visits also will become increasingly common—but can you charge for consultation via e-mail?
Look at where care is provided. Do you offer home telehealth? And if you’re worried about the clinic that opened up
down the street from you, focus more on the competition from big box retailers who offer health-care services. They’re
already here.
3. Owning patient engagement.
Getting patients engaged in their care is a challenge. But, Sensor said, by offering transparency in the cost and quality of
care, you’re taking a huge step. There is no other industry in which we buy goods or services with no idea what they cost
or the level of quality to expect. Making this information available to patients will empower them to make decisions, and
therefore become more involved in their own care.
Other steps, like offering same-day appointments and putting systems in place so patients are not repeatedly asked the
same questions in one visit, will go a long way in getting the patient to “care” about their care.
And you already have tools to get patients more engaged through prevention. If John Smith checked on his health
questionnaire that he has a family history of colon cancer, your staff can discuss screening with him and get him involved
in preventive services.
Lastly, help patients navigate the complicated health-care system—or better yet, simplify it. Just because health-care is
complicated on the provider side doesn’t mean it has to be complicated for patients, who are often already overwhelmed
by what’s happening with their health.
4. Flawless transitions of care.
Sensor had a personal experience with a flawed transition of care for his mother. The manual discharge process used by
the majority of hospitals is failing to consistently place patients in the best facilities for their situations, in a timely,
efficient and effective manner.
We have to do better than that, Sensor said.
Automated solutions can match a patient’s clinical and psycho/social needs with the right post-acute facility. They can
also provide relevant clinical information to the new provider—rather than handing a stack of medical records and
educational material to a family member, which Sensor experienced with his mother.
5. Leverage technology.
Though nothing replaces people in health care, leveraging technology goes a long way in improving patient outcomes.
Robust health-care IT can provide risk stratification; communicate the care plan to the care team, patient and family
members; and provide alerts when a patient misses important steps in his or her care plan.
Midnight is Approaching
Gov. Leavitt said many health-care providers are struggling with when to move toward a fee-for-value model.
He likened the situation to Cinderella at the ball. She knew that at 12 a.m., her coach would become a pumpkin. At 11:30, the
wine was flowing, and the men at the ball were handsome. Why would she leave? The problem is that there are many
Cinderellas, and at midnight they will all rush the door. Not all of them will be able to get out in time.
Smart health-care systems are already dancing toward the door and trying different approaches to make sure they flourish
in a fee-for-value world.
Request the Webinar Recording
We invite you to watch the recording of this webinar to learn more about how to adjust and respond
to risk in a fee-for-value world. Visit www.ensocare.com/aha-webinar-recording.
Ensocare | 877-852-8006 | www.ensocare.com