Health Care Policy

What should (can) senior healthcare policy makes do to improve efficiency of the overall healthcare system?

Efficiency looks at the ability to derive at a desired outcome/goa, which in turn use less time, energy, and resources. One perspective of improving overall care is to introduce Evidence Based Medicine. EBM would improve efficiency considering it optimizes decision making by emphasizing “Evidence (proof)” from well-designed research. By using this technique, healthcare professionals use less time, energy, and funds dedicated to useless treatment options than those that have been proved by research as successful.

Another initiative that I find interesting and that could possibly contribute to efficiency of the healthcare system is PAY- For- Performance.  According to Health Policy Briefs (2012) is aimed at improving the quality, efficiency, and overall value of healthcare by providing financial incentives to hospitals, physicians and other healthcare professionals to carry out such improvements and achieve optimal outcomes for patients.  “Pay-for-performance has become popular among policy makers and private and public payers, including Medicare and Medicaid…the ACA expands the use of pay-for-performance approaches in Medicare in particular and encourages experimentation to identify designs and programs that are most effective”( Health Policy Briefs,2012).

What can individual healthcare professionals do to improve the operational efficiency of their own organizations?

Individual healthcare professionals can improve their operational efficiency of their own organizations by measuring, analyzing, and controlling wasteful costs. Furthermore,  Long (2003) suggests  Six Sigma for operational efficiency considering the core of its program prepare for health reform and change in reimbursement levels with a comprehensive portfolio of evidence-based revenue cycle, spend and clinical resource consulting services to improve financial and operational performance across the enterprise, improve patient flow, throughput and satisfaction in high- volume service areas (OR, ED and diagnostics), and promote adherence to protocols and coordination of patient hand-offs to improve outcomes and patient satisfaction.

Reference

 Health Policy Briefs. (2012). Pay- For- Performance. Retrieved from: // http://www.healthaffairs.org/healthpolicybriefs/brief.php?brief_id=78

Long, Tom.  (2003). Operational Efficiencies in Healthcare Organizations: What to Do When the Low-Hanging Fruit is Gone.  Retrieved from: http://www.cathlabdigest.com/articles/Operational-Efficiencies-Healthcare-Organizations-What-Do-When-Low-Hanging-Fruit-Gone