What is Value-Based Healthcare (VBHC)? Why is it necessary to integrate new technologies in healthcare systems? Why has patient-behavior changed?
“The future is now”The famous slogan appeared on the screen when Alexander, the main character of the film The Time Machine, arrived on May 24th, 2030. When it comes to medicine, “value-based healthcare” (VBHC) is the future, and it is here now thanks to social media platforms.
Fifteen years of social media has changed the human condition and how we live. Everything we do now is online; we’re performing non-stop, constantly responding to messages, updating statuses, and checking apps. Suddenly, social media has erased the line distinguishing private and public life, allowing opportunities for anyone to share their opinion on whichever subject. Consumers now use social media reviews to influence their decisions; if your service is not satisfactory, word will spread on social media like wildfire.
Online reviews have forced companies and brands to react faster than ever, constantly improving their customer service while forging a closer relationship with their end-users. New demands from healthcare patients are now being heard, as the industry becomes involved in the, “share your positive/negative experience” game.
Medical destinations
Market statistics report that the global medical tourism market is growing at a rate of 15-25%, annually. There are a myriad of reasons to change from one’s home hospital to a hospital in another city or even country- long waiting lists, high costs, and lack of quality care are a few examples. So, how do we avoid this medical migration?
“Value-based healthcare” (VBHC) systems have ushered in a new era in relationships between hospitals and patients. According to this business model, the services of providers, including hospitals and physicians, are paid based on patient health-outcomes. The benefits of the system extend to patients, providers, payers, suppliers, and society as a whole. Patients spend less money to achieve better health; they only pay for quality care, motivating hospitals to focus on value instead of volume.
Truthfully, the VBHC is a team-oriented approach to patient care. It can help reduce/eliminate healthcare errors that result in patient harm. By adopting evidence-based care standards, hospital processes can be changed to create a better patient-care experience and increase care transparency for consumers. Moving from a fee-for-service to a fee-for-value system will take time.
Naturally, you might not feel ready to cross over into the future, but relax! Our experience proves that a new IoT system can help to transform the business model, generating positive client reviews.
IoT as a magic assistant
The Internet of Things (IoT) has offered many possibilities to the world of medicine. Ordinary medical devices that are connected to the Internet can collect valuable data and give more control over management processes/treatments. As Peter Drucker once said, “if you can’t measure, you can’t manage it.” That is precisely what IoT offers to healthcare organizations. MYSPHERA’s technology allows for an automatic way to measure system processes in order to improve them.
MYSPHERA’s advanced IoT process management platform is based on their own Real-Time Location System (RTLS) . New RTLS are slowly replacing passive RFID technologies. While RFID technologies are cheaper, they require human intervention to register data, therefore always bringing deviations.
MYSPHERA’s solution collects the location and statuses of people and equipment inside hospitals through Bluetooth sensors and gateways. These gateways are installed at fixed points, along with areas where location coverage is needed. They utilize Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) to receive information from patients, hospital staff, or any asset that has been tagged with the sensor. Then, they send this information to the system, which integrates perfectly with any HIS or EHR the hospital works with.
This valuable information can be used to design improved, more optimized processes, while avoiding bottlenecks and controlling hospital’s occupation. Managers and clinicians can use, and most likely need, this data to make real time decisions. Furthermore, MYSPHERA’s technology self-initiates the communication between different actors in the process, reducing idle times and increasing the performance.
Everyone knows where any particular doctor is, what is happening in any given emergency block, or which operating room is free. That’s a true team-oriented approach.
IoT for patient engagement
Let’s face it; we live in the age of information. Patients and their relatives demand to be informed in real time. IoT technologies address this area of opportunity.
MYSPHERA has deployed an app that any family member can download for free. It displays a patient’s status in real time. The application is compatible with TV screens, where information can be displayed in waiting rooms.
With the MYSPHERA application, patients and relatives will be informed of pertinent information without having to interrupt clinicians.
http://www.gmedicaltourism.com/
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0278431916305126
https://catalyst.nejm.org/what-is-value-based-healthcare/
