Historic times are taking place in the healthcare industry. Are you going to stay on the sidelines or are you going to get in the game?
Yesterday’s sessions at the HFMA Region 9 Conference in New Orleans reinforced two key themes:
HFMA Chair Melinda S. Hancock challenged us to “Go Beyond”. Specifically, go beyond our current payment system. As we move from volume to value, hospitals need to understand that we will not wake up one morning in the new exclusive value world. We will deal with both payment models (fee-for-service and value) for a long time, and actually live in both worlds simultaneously. In this journey, we will learn things for which we have absolutely no experience.
Bundled Payments for Care Initiative (BPCI) has become a “post-acute game” and hospitals can still get off the sidelines and get in the game by joining with a participating organization. Do your homework. Find the right fit. Jump in.
The Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement (CCJR) model bundle has been mandated in 75 selected geographic areas. Are you impacted? Will the geographic area be expanded based on results? Being proactive will be crucial going forward.
It is clear that we can no longer stick our heads in the sand. We must be in the game.
Dale Sanders, Sr. Vice President with Health Catalyst, shared an incredibly exciting example of radical transformation in the hospital setting. Health City Cayman Islands is a hospital created in collaboration by Narayana Hospitals of India and Ascension Health Alliance. Narayana’s founder, world renowned cardiac surgeon Dr. Devi Shetty, is mission-minded and seeks solutions. But he knows “it’s not a solution unless it’s affordable”. As Mother Teresa’s cardiologist, he was inspired by her words to him, “Hands that save are holier than lips that pray.” And from that inspiration, his mission-minded vision began to take shape.
At Health City, status quo (as we know it in U.S. hospitals today) was not an option. You can see innovation in everything they do.
Sanders ended his presentation by showcasing a documentary on Health City. In this video, we saw Dr. Shetty’s vision come to life on screen. It remains to be seen what impact this type of innovative approach will have on U.S. hospitals. Joint Commission accreditation was received earlier this year so will U.S. insured patients begin to consider this as an option? High quality care with affordable prices in a resort-like destination sounds pretty appealing.
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