Healthcare Management Consultancy

The BIG Picture

Envisioning the future provides the basis for examining our current context and how we can align the healthcare organisation accordingly.

The problem the vast majority of organisations feel 'stuck' with is not being able to allocate time to strategic thinking. It's much easier seeing our clients or conveying health policy, as the case maybe.

The BIG picture thinkers will remain ahead of the curve. Examining your context in relation to the big picture requires focus and provides the opportunity to take action!

We operate in an environment of demand-driven healthcare. The client has new attitudes, is demanding new experiences and seeks consumer-inclusive solutions. The internet provides new knowledge and information empowering a greater health literacy than ever before. Healthcare organisations that do not get it will fall behind.

The E-world will extend the reach of providers for the delivery of specialist services, remote diagnostics and even remote surgery. Chronic conditions can be monitored remotely. There will be e-delivery of information, appointments, test results, prescriptions and referrals.

Sustainability, is the big question facing governments in the allocation of the health care dollar. There are multiple pressures on the cost and affordability of healthcare: demanding client, demographics with an ageing population, expensive drugs that work better, cost of new technologies- in Information Technology, and for Diagnosis & Treatment as well as the costs of updating old infrastructures and facilities. Resources will need to be focused on interventions that produce outcomes.

The 4 BIG Picture business directions for healthcare organisations

1. Managing demand for services
2. Measuring, managing and being paid (or paying) for performance
3. Providing ready access to health information
4. Making healthcare organisations employers of choice

1.  Managing demand for services

Consumerism is changing the way clinical/service decisions are made - decisions are no longer just with the providers.

There will be concerns about the sustainability & overwhelming growth in demand.

Strategies to manage demand and channel consumerism:

• Partnerships with clients/users
• Matching providers & patients & team - based care
• Informing & educating patients
• Tools for self - monitoring, self - care, self - service
• Taking advantage of opportunities for e-service
• Focusing on Chronic Disease 

2.  Measuring, managing and paying for performance

To date there has been little financial reward for quality and service excellence. Escalating costs and concerns about sustainability highlights the importance of focusing resources for maximum impact.

Some actions that will shift more attention to performance include:

• Developing & implementing patient safety and quality indications
• Measuring & rewarding for patient satisfaction
• Giving quality incentives to service providers
• Informing stakeholders on what works and what is excellent
• Transparent resource allocation
• Payor concerns with efficiencies
• Paying attention to system performance

3.  Providing ready access to information

Access to health information to support the patient care process remains fragmented. Inadequate access to information has been an impediment to evidence-based practices and linked to patient-safety issues.

Strategies to support ready access to useful information include:

• Point of care computing
• Ensuring privacy and security
• Setting realistic timetables
• Developing open flexible architecture
• Investing in data warehouses & performance-monitoring metrics
• Providing ongoing training
• Patient access to and even control over their Electronic Medical Record (EMR)
• Consumer access to system/provider performance information

4.  Making healthcare organisations employers of choice

Healthcare organisations need to be a prized place to work - security, helping people, status. New entrants to the job market are looking for other features to their work - flexibility, team-based, learning/development opportunities, state-of-the-art technology

Some strategies to make healthcare organisations a work place of choice:

• Flatter organisations, pushing decision-making down the hierarchy
• Career options, development training
• Team environments
• Linking employee & patient satisfaction
• Above all, respect for the employee

We can customise a program to fulfil your aims and aspirations with your management or
front-line teams.
Click here to take your first step

* source: PwC HealthCast 2010