Business Transformation

The Secret to Transforming Patient Care

Mastering the grasp over the unique needs and expectations of customers has always been the most powerful tool in any solution providers’ arsenal. A deep understanding of a consumer’s preferences and purchase behaviour can empower process management companies with powerful insights to create highly customized solutions catering to the specific needs of the customer. This need is true for the healthcare sector as well.

A better understanding of patient journeys with the help of available data and analysis, thanks to the rapidly advancing information and technology solutions in the market, is already giving rise to an integrated healthcare management approach across the globe. These technological solutions are on the rise and are not limited to interfaces and access but go deeper into comprehending the underlying causes and triggers of an individual’s health. Key examples include providing electronic health records and assessment reports, centralized command centers for real-time updates regarding hospital capacity management, and telehealth apps or wearables. It is important to note here that enhancing patient care is not limited to the dissemination of information but also comprises the better visibility of disease specifications and the treatment process as a whole.

While technology deployment in healthcare cycles has changed health management for the good, a common consensus regarding the accurate use and implementation of standardized learnings is yet to mature to the industry level. Continuous innovation in this field has opened the path for standardized processes such as calibrating provider methodologies by disease condition across populations and regions. This entails a thorough assessment and capture of existing variances in disease detection, management, and follow-up. Established baselines of information and processes will ensure equality of knowledge management in patient education.


Phased approach

The pre-requisite for engaging patients to expand their understanding of healthcare applications is to emphasize the importance of doing so. While they actively communicate with their providers to diagnose and manage their health, both the provider and the payer should have tiered systems in place to empower patients and caregivers at the same time. This cross-communication could include diagnostic clarifications, treatment timelines, medical and pharmaceutical management, along with billing and cost explanations.

While a phased approach addresses the need for information dissemination, this must be accompanied by more pronounced application access and utilization. A phase-driven approach is ideal here to increase the level of involvement from the patient’s end. These phases may include identification and description of the required applications, the anticipated impact of the chosen applications, cataloguing learning resources, imparting ongoing technical support, and enabling personalized use of the applications.  

But despite the inclusion of health insurance management, medical visitation portals, and customer inquiry service help and assistance centres, there remains the need for enhancements in intentionally focused systems. This is a proactive approach that allows patients to be involved in their journey of healing and recovery. 
The cohesive approach of integrating disease management with phased knowledge sharing not only empowers each patient to be proactive in their healthcare regime but also increases their insight into the healthcare service delivery model.


Evidence-Based Medicine

Over the past several decades, the importance of evidence-based medicine (EBM) in assuring standards of patient care has evolved exponentially. It’s a systematic assessment of testing scientific principles and theories with the utilization of research and analytic tools. Through the integration of medical definitions with biostatistics, epidemiology, and meta-analyses, decision-makers are equipped to implement the best evidence into everyday patient management practices. While the applicability of EBM has readily found its place among reputable medical organizations, an ongoing assessment of the incorporation of these outcomes in provider management practices and policies is essential to ensuring ongoing optimal care.

The initial stages of setting up an EBM-based system to incorporate quality patient care relies on data repositories that standardize research and findings. While the assessment methodologies of medical conditions and patient populations may vary, the format of storage, as well as the access process, should be defined. Additionally, to enhance the accuracy of integration, EBM research should be categorized by type of interested stakeholder. A provider can incorporate medical updates into direct practice, while payer and quality assessment organizations will be focused on identifying trends and thresholds of patient care.

As important as the data structure is in capturing the findings of EBM research, data correlation also remains essential to follow-up assessments. Data review and analyses will offer insight into the efficiency, accuracy, and quality of implementing EBM in practical settings. Not only can the data summarize current developments, but predictive modelling can also prove invaluable in integrating treatment methodologies by disease condition, location, and patient population. In turn, this could potentially lead to the design of future evidence-based studies.

One notable nuance about EBM is the need to include and/or augment existing data capture, storage, and maintenance capabilities of all parties of interest. Data repositories should be robust in capturing, processing, analyzing, and reporting information to ensure thoroughness. These aspects of evidence-based medicine are precursors to implementation into the patient management system. Since data study will entail multi-region centres, the data should be accessible and analyzed in a systematic manner that enables a standardized perspective of findings across all study factors.

Implementation of EBM not only has academic implications for overseeing quality clinical assessments, but also practical implications in integrating science with social care. While bringing science to accepted medical care, the technological advancement in healthcare is gradually allowing standardization to pervade regional care models as well, bringing us closer to the aspiration of opening healthcare access for one and all. Technology here is an indispensable ally.  


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