Finding Success with Big Data Analytics in Healthcare

The healthcare industry is in a state of flux, but one thing that remains constant is the focus on cost and quality. To achieve success in value-based care, healthcare organizations need to invest in the right tools. In fact, a recent study found that 70 percent of healthcare leaders believe health IT tools are essential for growth.

MedeAnalytics client Soyal Momin, vice president of data and analytics of Presbyterian Health Services (PHS), recently connected with Jennifer Bresnick of HealthIT Analytics during HIMSS18. They discussed the challenges of balancing cost and quality, and Momin outlined a step-by-step plan that helps his organization make the best use of their data and analytics investment.

Momin noted that PHS found it increasingly difficult to oversee its entire business—eight hospitals, a statewide health plan and a growing multi-specialty group—from one integrated view. Balancing the organization’s costs, utilization, quality, risk and outcomes became a challenge. But by following the step-by-step plan, PHS achieved measurable ROI in all clinical, operational and financial areas of their enterprise while reducing redundancies and achieving quick wins. By extending analytics across the enterprise and eliminating point solutions, PHS saved more than $11 million.

Momin’s plan includes the following best practices:

• Start with a solid foundation—A solid foundation and leadership buy-in helps to create an analytics program that is scalable, sustainable and set for success. Setting up recurring meetings will encourage ongoing support from top executives.
• Outline concrete goals—These should outline opportunities that will make a measurable impact on a specific clinical, operational or financial function. It’s important to work with a team to develop these goals so everyone understands the objectives and the activities required to achieve them.
• Create an integrated enterprise data warehouse—This allows organizations to profile their data and address any existing data quality issues. Data quality and integrity form the foundation for every initiative going forward, so it’s essential to devote time to develop those resources.
• Know when to ask for help—Organizations need to be mindful of where their expertise lies. Overextending in-house capabilities will only lead to failure, which is why PHS turned to MedeAnalytics. With data analytics and expertise in both the payer and provider spaces, MedeAnalytics helped PHS add value within their integrated data analytics model.
• Slim down your systems—It can be challenging to determine which data tools are right for multiple initiatives, so it’s important to centralize as many analytics initiatives as possible and only keep tools that are necessary.
• Deliver results—Defining the value and communicating the gains back to the organization’s leadership is the final step along the pathway to big data analytics success.

Learn more about PHS’ journey toward a data-driven culture here. If you’re interested in learning how our data platform can help your organization achieve success, request a demo or contact us here.