Converting volatility into hybrid systems of care
Striking a balance with hybrid care
Countries that seem to have a handle on healthcare, at least from a spend or outcomes perspective, are continuing to experience volatility due to world events, disruption in supply chains, workforce shortages, and new diseases. The magic is in being able to convert this volatility into new hybrid systems of care that deliver on the promise of “better” for our patients.
Hybrid systems of care deliver:
Integrated services:
Combines face-to-face interactions with telehealth services, such as video consultations, remote monitoring, and digital health assessments
May integrate traditional Western medicine with complementary and alternative medicine approaches
Flexibility:
Allows patients to choose between in-person visits or virtual care based on their preference, condition, or convenience
Enables healthcare providers to offer services outside of traditional office hours or settings
Personalization:
Tailors healthcare delivery to the needs and circumstances of each patient, considering factors like their location, technology access, and health status
Adapts to the patient's journey through the healthcare system, with different touchpoints for digital and in-person care
Advantages of hybrid systems of care:
Increased access:
Makes healthcare services more accessible to people in remote or underserved areas
Offers a solution for patients with mobility issues or those who have difficulty attending in-person appointments
Cost-effectiveness:
Can reduce costs associated with travel, time off of work, and the need for physical infrastructure
Optimizes resources by allocating them according to the urgency and necessity of in-person care
Continuity of care:
Facilitates continuous care through digital follow-ups and remote monitoring, ensuring that patients remain engaged with their treatment plans
Patient-centered care:
Empowers patients by offering them more control over their healthcare experience and choices
Improves patient satisfaction by providing care in the comfort of their own homes when appropriate
Mergers and acquisitions deals pose opportunities for positive change
Mergers and acquisitions continue to play out across the healthcare industry. Cross-sector mergers between payers, providers, and consumer healthcare further complicate the data landscape and care coordination for all parties involved. Organizations share lofty aspirations of delivering irrefutable benefits as they gain control over more links in the value chain. Providers seeking to realize health equity often add struggling organizations, like rural hospitals or those vital to an urban core, to already financially stressed portfolios in an effort to tangibly transform experiences and outcomes for patients.
The chaos post-merger or acquisition creates unique opportunities to standardize, optimize, and enable technology in processes and workflows that otherwise stand in the way of delivering exceptional value to the customers and workforce. There is no better time to address chronic operational challenges than when they could worsen as you grow your organization. Challenging the status quo, focusing on the customer, listening to your people, and having the courage to reinvent the processes of the past will be the difference between organizations that win in the transition and those that only expand their footprint with more of the same.
The emergence of patient-centered care and mass customization
The concept of mass customization in healthcare is finally becoming a reality. For decades, understanding who needs what, when they need it, how it is delivered, and transparency as to what it will cost has been a dream for many of us. Imagine a world where every interaction with a patient or member was informed of their preferences, clinical and financial data, and knowledge of their community's support systems and structures.
The notion of patient-centered care has eluded us, hampered by a lack of visibility into patient needs and what is available and affordable as consumer needs evolve and change over the course of a lifetime. Large language models now make it possible for us to connect the dots on the care continuum in a person-specific way and shift from a point-in-time encounter model to a model that grows and changes as the person and their needs grow and change.
Moving to whole-life care takes our learnings from looking at social determinants of health and applying them in a current and person-informed approach. Identifying health inequities and the contributing factors beyond the encounter forces us to think about interventions that are value-based, prevention-focused, and predicted in a way that eliminates bias and discrimination for the social injustices that contribute to the health disparities experienced today.
Slalom contributor: Mel Donatelli
