Collecting data is complex, and understanding what you are looking at is just as challenging. For OSF HealthCare, information streams in from a variety of sources, it’s likely in different formats and it all lives in disparate locations. That’s why the Healthcare Analytics department was formed in 2013 to facilitate and translate data into actionable insights.
This includes building tools that make it easier for leaders to make informed decisions on patient care. It’s also crucial to effectively manage our health care system as a whole as well as its individual entities. Such is the case with our clinics that offer primary and specialty care services on a daily basis.
Like much of the data we receive, information on our primary and specialty care offices was segregated and difficult to analyze. OSF Medical Group, which oversees all clinics, worked with Healthcare Analytics, IT and finance to create a standard clinic operations performance management system to help drive operational excellence and better serve our patients.
Practice Level Dashboard
With the organization agreeing on the need for a performance management platform, the first step in building a comprehensive Practice Level Dashboard was for us to partner with OSF Medical Group leaders to understand which metrics they needed and where they were located. Once that list was finalized, we had to strategize how to convert all of that information into one format as it was coming in from different sources. Then there was the matter of getting all experts on the same page.
Once launched this year, primary and specialty care site managers as well as lead clinicians will be able to pull real-time and historical information on everything from access and quality to finance and patient experience–all in one place. This will allow individual facilities and providers to see where they stand in comparison to others as well as the targets set by OSF HealthCare leaders.
“We were spending a lot of time trying to aggregate data from different places instead of acting on what the data was telling us,” said Amanda Vogelsang, senior vice president of clinical operations for OSF Medical Group. “We will soon have a single source of truth where we can get a holistic view of the health of our practices and make improvements where necessary.”
In addition, another dashboard is being built within the electronic medical record for front line Mission Partners to use. That will allow physicians, advanced practice provider and nurses to focus on quality and access metrics.
“The goal is that these two dashboards will be connected from an operational standpoint and be aligned with pre-existing metric definitions where appropriate,” said Vogelsang.
Value to our communities
Having these tools up and running will help us drive operational improvement and effectiveness at the practice level which will ultimately impact the operational effectiveness of the entire organization. This translates to standard levels of care for all of our communities — no matter where they are located.
It also allows us to keep a pulse on the experience we are providing to our patients. From a service standpoint, that means faster scheduling for patients and more access to physicians. It also means improved quality and reduced costs associated with the care we provide.
Last Updated: February 5, 2020