ChangeNow4Health

Doctors Are Ready For a Change.

summary

Providers need to embrace new technology and must have real-time access to medical history and records.

A recent Commonwealth Fund survey of providers found:

• Doctors rated “spending more time with patients” and “better patient access to preventive care” ahead of all other factors in improving quality of care.
• An important 35 percent said “improved teamwork and communication” were very important.
• 25 percent cited “more use of computer technology.”
• A quarter of physicians feel that “better information on best practices” would improve quality.
• 21 percent cited “better treatment guidelines for common conditions.”

Embrace New Technology

Providers need to operate like the rest of the world, striving for greater efficiency, higher quality and lower costs. We all know that. And we applaud their efforts in that direction. The average cost of a state-of-the-art electronic medical record for a physician is $33,000. That’s about $600 a month for four years. But just 18 percent of physicians use one.

There’s a growing readiness to explore digital improvements to the health care system. And the carrier community must respond with the information providers are ready to receive. The same Commonwealth Fund survey found:

• Just 20 percent of physicians receive internal or external data on processes of care.
• Just 18 percent receive internal or external data on clinical outcomes.
• 25 percent receive them on patient surveys.
• Overall, 33 percent of physicians in the survey said they receive some kind of quality-related data. But just 25 percent of it comes from health plans. Another 13 percent comes from internal sources, while professional societies and accreditation agencies provide 7 percent each. CMS provides 4 percent.

Get Real-Time Access to Medical History and Records

We want physicians to have immediate access to a patient’s complete medical history, regardless of whether the patient saw doctors outside the current plan’s network in the past. We want hospitals to have real-time access to that information, too. And we want everybody involved—patients, purchasers, payers and providers—to see right through the finances and operations of the system. Employers can then make smart decisions about coverage and patients can make smart decisions about their care.

Nationwide Rollout of Availity

One of the best changes that can be made right now is a nationwide rollout of Availity, a standardized, online real-time claims interface jointly developed by Humana and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida. All of Florida’s hospitals and 95 percent of its physicians have embraced this technology. This system has enormously expanded connectivity and has been received very favorably by providers.
Read more about this example of change »

Let’s Try Something New

What we all need is something that helps physicians and other providers, helps the insurance community and most of all, helps patients receive the care they need as smoothly as possible.